La Belle et la bete
by TuRtLe88
Summary: Klaus is cursed and only his true love can fix it. Caroline has been steering clear of supernatural drama since she left Mystic Falls. What will she do when Elijah shows up and drags her to New Orleans to break his brother's curse? Klaroline. Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This is the first fic I've ever actually completed and/or posted for TVD or TO, and it's the chaptered fic I've finished or posted in a very long time. As far as canon and spoilers, I haven't actually watched much of the show past mid-season 5 of TVD and mid-season 1 of The Originals, so I'm ignoring canon past about TVD 5x13 and the relative episode of The Originals. Considering the shows fly fast and loose with their own canon, I don't feel too bad about it. Also, this fic is un-beta'd, but I've lightly edited it myself. If you want to beta, you're welcome to send me a PM or leave a thoughtful review where you also request the position. Otherwise, you are subject to my idea of good grammar. Finally, this fic is written in its entirety, including a few related one-shots that I'll be posting alongside it, all of which only need to be edited before being posted, so I should be able to post regularly and frequently.**

 _DISCLAIMER: I don't own The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, Beauty and the Beast, or anything else recognizable. They all belong to their respective owners and I'm just grateful they let us play with them._

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

Caroline blinked. It wasn't terror, really, and it definitely wasn't because her eyes were dry or she was tired. No, this was pure confusion. Caroline Forbes could not believe her eyes. Because standing directly in front of her was Elijah Mikaelson, and she was in her apartment at Whitmore. Her apartment that was very much inhabited by her very live friend Cara Lynn who was most assuredly on vervain (and, admittedly, completely unaware of vampires).

"Hello, Caroline," he greeted in possibly the most gentlemanly voice Caroline had ever heard, although if her friends and Klaus were to be believed, Elijah _was_ the Original gentleman (pun wholeheartedly intended). Caroline herself had had very limited interactions with the Elder Original. Most of his dealings with Mystic Falls had involved making deals with Elena and the Salvatores in regards to the life of the doppelganger. Caroline's dealings with the Originals almost all centered around either Klaus' feelings toward her (it was hard to call it a crush when she remembered that, at the end of the day, he was over a thousand years old), or the rivalry she and Rebekah had shared due to their disturbingly similar natures.

"Elijah," she greeted warily. She knew she stood absolutely zero chance against him, especially considering Klaus was in possession of the only weapon that could kill an Original, _and_ he had access to all of the daggers that could immobilize his siblings. She also knew that Elijah was an honor-bound man (vampire, whatever) and therefore, her best bet would be a battle of wits and words (and somehow, she seriously doubted that, in spite of her most recent major-change to philosophy with an emphasis in pre-law, she would be any match in that way either). That meant that Caroline's life had to be of so much worth or so little that Elijah didn't feel the need to kill her. Luckily he, unlike Klaus, seemed to be a lot less inclined to violence to appease his every emotion.

"Your roommate most kindly let me in when I mentioned I had business that needed to be discussed with you. I hardly needed to persuade her," he explained smoothly. She waited silently. She'd be in far more control of the situation if she didn't say anything, and he would explain eventually. "This is the sort of thing I cannot discuss around prying ears," he added, after a few moments.

Caroline moved to shut her bedroom door. "Cara Lynn is human, as I'm sure you know, and there are no others like us in the building, let alone this part of town."

"As you may be aware, my brother has been re-securing his chosen throne in New Orleans. While I do not necessarily agree with my brother's goals, I care for him deeply and I have found, over the centuries, it is best to stick close to him, await the eventual fallout, and help him piece his plans and his psyche back together again."

Caroline nodded. She had known about New Orleans in the vaguest sense, and she had figured as much about Elijah's motivations. He continued, "In his latest misguided attempt to set the city to rights—" Caroline snorted here, knowing full well that Elijah was putting a pretty spin on a Klaus-centric bloodbath (that was basically the Original Hybrid version of a temper tantrum. A millennium old and he still hadn't outgrown toddler-level problem-solving skills). Elijah continued on as if she hadn't reacted at all, "—he managed to incur the wrath of the witches of the French Quarter, who are quite powerful alone. In number, they're unlike anything you've ever dealt with. Outside of the Quarter, they are powerless; inside they are nearly unstoppable. And Niklaus was practically in the center of their power when he angered them."

"Arrogant asshole," Caroline grumbled to herself. She tried to ignore the stirrings of sympathy and worry in her stomach and instead focus on the fact that whatever Klaus had brought upon himself, he probably deserved it.

Elijah let out a little chuckle that suggested he didn't disagree with Caroline in the slightest before he continued. "When we first arrived in New Orleans a few years ago, the vampire who had been taking care of the city since our last visit, Marcel, had a witch under his control and a curse had been cast on the werewolves of the area that reversed their regular curse, leaving them wolves except upon the full moon when they transformed into humans.

"In a bid for Hayley's cooperation, we eventually managed to convince a witch to give us the cure and we used it on the local werewolf pack. However, the witches now know they are very capable of crippling someone with a wolf side." Caroline was starting to see where Elijah was going with this, but she didn't understand where she fit into it all. Klaus had promised her he would no longer interfere in her life, and while Elijah may not have known about the promise, Caroline was almost positive there was nothing she could do to help Klaus. She wasn't a witch, and she couldn't break a curse.

"So they hit Klaus with this curse?" she spoke her first sentence to Elijah.

"A modified version of it, yes," he nodded, seeming almost pleased that she had figured that little bit out for herself, as if it were some sort of accomplishment; the quality of opponents in New Orleans must have been pretty abysmal if his expectations of her were so low. "Because of his hybrid nature and his status as an Original vampire, they couldn't confine the effects to just the full moon. While the moon is out, Klaus can be in his normal form, meaning that there is only one day a month where he is completely stuck in his wolf form for its entirety. The other difference is how the curse is broken."

He stopped and Caroline watched him expectantly, wondering how it was different, and why. But he stopped, as if it were difficult for him to say. Caroline would bet her entire stash of blood bags in her secret mini-fridge in the corner that this way to break the curse was why Elijah was there in Virginia, hundreds of miles away from his cursed brother.

"How do you break it?" she prompted.

"As you have probably already surmised, that is why I am here. One of the young witches who keeps us informed said that, while she didn't help to cast this spell, she created the original, and she could feel how this one was different just in the magic of the New Orleans witches that she is tapped into. She said that for Klaus to return to normal, it will take the act of true love." Elijah looked almost embarrassed by his pronouncement.

It took a moment for it to sink in. Caroline felt all of the pieces clicking together in her brain. And when it all fell into the neat boxes she had in her mind, she let out a giggle. And when that giggle wasn't enough, she laughed for a good couple of minutes.

"As much as the thought amuses you, we all know why I am here, Caroline," Elijah suddenly seemed to be channeling Klaus as far as conveying is annoyance and irritation.

"That's not why I'm laughing," Caroline gasped out, calming down a little bit because of the inherent danger of an angry Original. "It's just, the curse isn't represented by a rose, is it?" she let out another burst of giggles, sobering when she saw that Elijah didn't get the reference and still looked like he wanted to remove her spleen or something else painful but ultimately unimportant. "Beauty and the Beast. You're explaining the plot of Beauty and the Beast." She had managed to contain the giggling for now, but couldn't keep the amused grin off her face.

" _La Belle et la bête_ ," Elijah murmured to himself, shaking his head. It seemed he was amused too. "I hope you plan to explain the indignity of it all to Niklaus in excruciating detail," he added, suddenly looking like someone's brother. Klaus' brother.

Caroline paused here. "Actually…" she said somewhat reluctantly. His gaze snapped back, serious again. "Look, I'm a student. I'm barely in my twenties and I'm just starting my life. I've had this conversation with Klaus, a couple years ago. We made a deal, and I can't just up and leave my life here. In spite of everything he says, he doesn't love me." A denial she'd made to herself a million times. "I'm sorry. I wish I could be more help."

"I have spent nearly a thousand years by my brother's side," Elijah informed her. "I have seen Niklaus at his best and at his worst. I know him, and I know that the only time he resembles the brother I remember, the man he once was, is when he's spent time with you."

"I don't know what you want me to say," Caroline responded. "I can't just drop everything because Klaus needs true love's kiss to return to his regularly scheduled massacres. Maybe he needs some time away from it all to think about some things, find himself. The usual."

"You are between semesters and I know for a fact that the board of admissions at both Tulane and Whitmore are vervain free. I will agree to pay your rent until your roommate can find a suitable replacement and we can move your things to New Orleans." Elijah was all business. "My brother will tear the city apart until he gets this curse broken, thereby ruining his chances of doing just that."

He paused a beat while she gaped at his no-nonsense tone. "And it's not a kiss he requires. It is the act of true love."

Caroline wished she would gag at the thought. "Seriously? The witches thought that it would be funny to get him laid?" she forced out instead.

"Witches have a notoriously twisted sense of humor," Elijah said with a grimace.

"I take it you're not going to take no for an answer." Caroline hefted out a sigh with an eye roll. "God, this is why I like Klaus better, and do not tell him I said that."

Elijah merely quirked an amused eyebrow. "Klaus would totally let me get away with just walking away. He _has_ let me get away with it," she explained.

"Be that as it may, I have a wolf-Klaus locked up because he lashes out and tries, rather successfully, I might add, to bite anyone he sees. I made it here today because it is the new moon and he will not be able to turn human enough to escape until tomorrow night. You are my last-ditch effort to save my brother," Elijah confided.

Before Caroline could make any comment toward that, there was a knock at her bedroom door. She grinned as politely as she could at Elijah and opened the door. "Cara, what's up?"

"You do know that guy, right? I know I shouldn't have let him in but, like, he seemed sincere." She grinned tightly.

"Don't worry. I had a thing with his brother a long time ago. He's appealing on the behalf. Typical guy stuff," she shrugged it off. "Is that all you needed?"

"No. Actually, I was wondering if I could borrow that bracelet you have. That twisty, sparkly, definitely expensive one. It's going to look so great with that green dress I got. You know the one, and I'm going out clubbing to pick out a man. You can even come with, find you one too." Cara Lynn actually grinned brightly.

Elijah shot Caroline a look that told her he knew the bracelet in question, probably because he'd been there when Klaus stole it. "I can't Cara, not tonight. I actually have to go on a trip to visit some friends in Louisiana. Maybe when I get back."

"But I can borrow the bracelet, right? It makes my whole outfit."

Caroline didn't know how exactly to deny it politely. For the first time in a long time, she felt like channeling Elena, whom she hadn't seen in, months? A year, maybe? Caroline was decidedly avoiding Mystic Falls and Elena had dropped out of school. Things had been strange between all of them.

"Actually, I can't loan it to you. I know it sounds stupid, but, um, it…" she faltered. Did she lie or did she tell the truth? She settled for, "Look, it's really personal. I just…I don't want to disappoint the person who gave it to me."

Cara Lynn nodded. "Fine. Ruin my outfit. Whatever, I'll just wear the blue one that makes my tits look fabulous. Sure to pick up a guy that way." And she strutted out.

"I'm glad to see you've come around to my way of thinking. Pack quickly. I've chartered a flight and I'd hate to lose our flight time."

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 _ **Comments? Questions? Concerns? Any thoughts about this fic at all? Leave a review!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**AN:** **Hey there, Klaroliners (is that even a thing I can call you?), welcome back for Chapter 2. A few things, real quick, before we get in to the good stuff. For starters, thank you so much for all the positive support! This is one of the most popular fics I've ever written, all within a day! So thanks for all the faves, follows, and reviews! Keep 'em coming and I'll keep the chapters rolling out. Another thing is that a couple of reviewers asked if the baby was going to make an appearance. The short answer is no. The slightly less short, but still pretty short answer is trust me. The long answer belongs to one of the related one-shots I briefly mentioned in the last Author's Note (I call them vignettes in my head because I'm a pretentious asshole). The one that belongs between chapter 8 and 9, actually, so it'll be a while. Just know that I'm a fan of** _ **The 100**_ **and** _ **Game of Thrones**_ **, so what that says about me as a person/author… Friendly reminder that this is un-beta'd, so I've lightly edited it myself, but anyone who wants to point out errors gets points, I guess? Well, let's get on with the show!**

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

Caroline was not particularly fond of airplanes. She'd been on them all of twice in her human days, and had been terrified. As a vampire, it was a million times worse. Caroline resisted the urge to kiss the ground when they finally landed, but only just.

When they finally made it to the mansion that Klaus had managed to construct him for himself, Caroline was almost relieved at the familiar surroundings. It was so reminiscent of the place he'd built in Mystic Falls, Caroline half expected one of her friends to come around the corner with some crazy scheme or another. It was the exact reason she'd left in the first place.

"Elijah? Have you brought another one to parade in front of Nik? He's gotten rather growly. Might have to throw a tourist in there with him or he won't make it to moonrise tomorrow," Kol Mikaelson descended into the parlor.

"What witch had to sell her soul to revive you?" Caroline asked with a furrowed brow. "Sorry about the Gilberts by the way, but we managed to kill two birds with one stone. Katherine took the cure, cured Silas, and both are dead."

"Was that supposed to be an apology?" Kol asked, looking amused rather than angry. Of course, in Caroline's limited experience, Kol ran almost as hot and cold as Klaus did.

"Hey, for the record, I voted against killing you. That was all Elena and Jeremy. I just helped clean up their mess because what is Mystic Falls except cleaning up Elena Gilbert's mess," Caroline announced bitterly.

"That's all right," Kol smiled brightly. "I'm the one who set Elijah your way. The only one who has any hope of returning our dear brother to his former glory is you. Marcel had that trampy bartender come by, and the witches sent their regards with that hybrid girl," he grinned brightly.

"Witches and their twisted sense of humor," Caroline recanted Elijah's words from her apartment earlier that day.

"Nik snapped at both of them like he has at anyone else who's tried to get near him." Kol wagged his eyebrows suggestively. "So what do you say, little thing? If Nik turns you down, I'd gladly take his place. I'm said to be the fun brother."

"Just show me to the dungeon slash torture chamber that every vampire house is required to have by law," Caroline rolled her eyes. "I'm guessing by the scratching I hear, it's this way?" she added, heading off to where she heard the frenzied efforts of a wolf trying to get free.

Kol and Elijah followed her. She could practically hear the amusement radiating off the former and the unvoiced sigh of the latter. "This way," Kol tugged her away from the door where she heard Klaus struggling to escape.

"I don't mean to throw you to the wolves… Well, just the one wolf. And he likes you. He probably won't kill you." Kol smirked, wrenched open a door, shoved her in, and slammed it closed.

There was a low growl that Caroline felt more than heard and then she saw gold eyes staring straight at her. His hackles were raised and his fur was grey and brown and white, not just black like Tyler's had been.

"Oh calm down," she grumbled at the wolf. "Just because you're grouchy, doesn't mean you have to take it out on me. Your brothers are the ones who sent me here on this stupid fool's errand."

The wolf snorted, but it sounded more like an amused snort than an angry one. At least, that's how Caroline was interpreting it. The wolf padded over to her and bumped his head against her leg. "Well, if I had any doubts you were you before, I definitely don't now." She tangled her fingers in the fur on his head.

"You owe me brother," she heard Kol's voice from outside the cell. "The castle in Denmark, just like we promised. I told you this was going to work."

"Fine. As promised," Elijah conceded.

"Rude," she said to Klaus, nudging his furry form lightly. "Don't you think? Betting on your fate. Or my fate against your fangs." He nudged her back. "Klaus agrees, guys. If I understand hybrid, and since I'm one of the few people on the planet to have had romantic relations with two of them I'm the only one qualified, he's saying something about daggers." If a wolf could grin, that's what Klaus was doing.

"Nik, can we trust you not to attempt to murder everyone again? Bekah's still a bit off from that bite this morning," Kol taunted.

Klaus nuzzled against the hand she was running across his head. His ears twitched between her fingers. "I think he's agreeing to your terms or whatever." Caroline was absurdly fascinated by what was going on between her and wolf-Klaus. She was staring at his golden eyes and they were staring back at her.

The door creaked open and Elijah stood there. "Now that the fun's over, Kol has retreated," Elijah explained dryly. "Niklaus, show the girl to your room. I trust you to behave yourself, or we'll be forced to lock you in here again, Caroline or no." And then the elder Original brother disappeared.

Klaus padded out of the cell and Caroline stood in stunned silence. He glanced back at her, as if to say 'come on' and she felt practically compelled to follow him. So she did. It was all so surreal, being surrounded by all the art that Klaus favored, following his wolf form through to his bedroom. She had spent so long trying not to think about this being possible in any reality, that now that it was coming to pass, she was having trouble comprehending it all.

When she entered his room, it wasn't what she expected. She assumed he had a studio somewhere else where he drew and painted. Here, in his bedroom, it was almost plain in comparison to his usual decorating style. Simple, elegant—modern, even—were words she would use to describe the room.

She felt his penetrating gaze on her, as if he was waiting for a reaction. Instead of indulging him, she stepped over to the bed. She'd never been able to pin down in her mind whether he was a silk sheets kind of guy or if a high thread count cotton was more his style. She stuffed a hand beneath the duvet to discover which. "Egyptian cotton," she muttered to herself.

Before she knew what had happened, Klaus had used his supernatural speed to hop atop the bed and get in her face quite literally. She could no longer ignore his presence. "Yes, my first stop in your room was your bed," she nodded. If wolves could smirk… She rolled her eyes, but grinned while she shoved his head away affectionately.

She turned away, then, looking around the room. She really did not want to confront Klaus… at all really, but especially not when he was a wolf. Some people would assume that because he couldn't talk back, it was the perfect time to confront him. They would be wrong. Klaus' bite was very much worse than his bark. Caroline would take Klaus' heated insults and roiling anger over a beast lashing out any day. She could shout right back at him when he was in his more human form. As a wolf, there was little she could do to combat his mood.

Klaus' usual necklaces and things were laid neatly on the dresser. Caroline was fairly certain he didn't take them off, so that they were laid atop said dresser was likely due to Elijah's influence and Klaus' attachment to them. She fingered them as she examined them each, wondering how long he'd had them, what they meant to him.

She continued along, looking in at his closet and his bathroom. She marveled at how neat it all was. And then she spotted a small sketchbook sitting on the desk in the room. She meandered over, but just as she was about to lift the cover she heard a growl from the bed. Klaus had lain down to watch her, resting his chin on his front paws and looking disconcertingly canine.

"I can't look?" she scowled at him. He huffed at her, or sneezed, shaking his head. "Ugh. You can't even talk and you're still infuriating." She couldn't manage to fill her voice with as much disgust as she wanted. In fact, it came out almost affectionate.

She flopped down on the bed next to him and he moved his head to rest it on her stomach. "I hate airplanes," she mumbled tiredly. She found herself doing what she'd been doing since she'd arrived, tangling her fingers in his fur, this time at his neck. "When I was little, my dad took me to New York and we flew over a storm somewhere or something, but there was really bad turbulence. My mom, being the sheriff that she was, explained famous plane crashes and my eight-year-old brain had taken that to mean that if the plane went down, we would die. I was terrified. It was one of the few times my dad had no idea how to calm me down."

Klaus pressed into the point of contact where she was petting him. They lay there for a while, comforting each other merely with their presence. Caroline hadn't felt this at peace in a long time. In spite of leaving Mystic Falls behind, she still spent most of her time worrying. She had classes and grades, friendships that she had to maintain (and sometimes, she found herself longing for a night out at the club to go as pear-shaped as an MFHS dance), as well as her regular trips to the blood banks in the area to pilfer her meals. And when it wasn't stressors in her life keeping her high strung, she faced nightmares, including but not limited to the time she'd actually died, the two times she'd suffered a hybrid bite (minus the Klaus saving her at the end bit), and her parents' deaths.

Later that night, Caroline heard the front door open; from the twitching of his ears, Klaus had heard it too. She'd heard Klaus' siblings wandering around the house while they were lying there: Kol's irregular step as he paced around the house trying to find something to do; the steady thrum of Elijah as he spoke quietly on the phone, his business-like tone the only thing she could make out; Rebekah humming softly to herself no matter where she went. None of them had left the place the entire time she'd been there.

She heard new sets of steps enter. A group of three, greeting each other as if they'd met on the walk up. She couldn't quite hear what they were saying, but one of them sounded familiar. She felt Klaus' sleek muscles tense under her hand, but otherwise, neither moved.

Before long, the three guests were at the doorway anyway. "So, they let the big, bad wolf out of the cage," the male one said in a smooth voice. He wore a smirk that was almost reminiscent of Klaus' but nowhere near as charming. "I'm surprised he hasn't ripped your head off, little vamp."

Hayley, the only one Caroline recognized, let out a snort. Still, she didn't say anything about their shared history. Caroline wasn't feeling particularly generous toward the girl, and she was suspecting that Hayley was the hybrid welcoming gift the witches sent, if the rumors she'd heard before leaving home were anything to go by. That meant, of course, that the dislike the two had shared when Hayley had been human was turning into straight-up hatred for the other girl.

"She's…?" the third one trailed off. She was blonde and distinctly human. Her pulse was racing and she smelled alive. Kol had mentioned a trampy bartender, and while Caroline wouldn't say that was a particularly apt descriptor, she did see where he was coming from.

"Yup," Caroline agreed, sitting up. "Vampire," she admitted plainly. Klaus shifted in agitation next to her, pressing his side more firmly into hers.

"Still, impressive that he hasn't tried to kill you yet," the man pointed out. "Are you Elijah's bet then?"

"I think Kol actually wanted to take credit for the idea. Elijah just did the fetching. Which is probably a good idea considering the last time I saw Kol was right before my best friend's little brother killed him," she shrugged. They should probably be aware that Caroline and her friends were mostly responsible for the Original family being an endangered species. Maybe they'd stop underestimating her.

"I really wish you'd stop bringing that up," Kol groaned. It seemed he'd sought out the entertainment the party of guests was inevitably going to bring him.

"What? That you got killed by a seventeen-year-old kid and his baby vamp of a sister? Not likely," Caroline snorted. Klaus shook his head. "Okay, so he didn't work alone. Still, the bumbling of the Salvatores and Elena? You really think they helped any?" she looked at the wolf as if he was crazy. The wolf version of a grin spread across his features.

"He's…? Seriously?" the unnamed woman questioned. She looked almost hurt to Caroline's eyes. Definitely confused.

"I don't think we met. Caroline Forbes," she extended her right hand which had been curled into Klaus' fur up until that point. She felt the thwack of his tail against her back which she was pretty sure was Cursed Hybrid for 'Put that hand back this instant.'

"Camille O'Connell," she took Caroline's hand warily. Her grip was soft, and not just human soft, but bad handshake soft.

"And I'm Marcel," the man added, taking Caroline's hand in a much firmer grip after Camille had released it.

Then, Camille and Marcel shifted awkward looks between Caroline and Hayley. "Oh, we know each other," Hayley said through a tight grimace.

"She slept with my ex-boyfriend. While he was still my boyfriend," Caroline explained. "We're not exactly close."

Hayley started to backtrack and deny, but Caroline knew. Deep down, she'd always known. The 'lies' Tyler had let Klaus believe about his time in the Appalachians weren't exactly lies. Klaus let out his low growl that she felt rather than heard.

Klaus hopped off the bed to sit at her feet in front of it, ever the guard dog. Camille reached forward to touch him and he snapped at her. He wasn't aiming to bite the human, Caroline knew, but he was definitely trying to scare her away from trying that again.

She tugged his ears and then pulled his head back so he was looking at her. "It's not nice to bite," she informed him. "Just because you look more beast than man, doesn't mean you have to act like it."

And just like that, the mood in the room changed. It wasn't as if she was putting on a show, trying to taunt the others because she was allowed to touch the grumpy wolf where they were not. But the gesture was understood by everyone present. The three guests saw why Caroline was the Mikaelson bet.

Caroline shot a 'help me' sort of look at Kol while the others were focused on Klaus. He patently ignored it. She should have known that if he was quiet for that long, he was clearly enjoying the show.

"I just figured Klaus had probably calmed down some, so I brought Cammi by one more time. We all want this curse to end. He's somehow more of a pain in the ass like this than he is normally," Marcel explained. "But we should really get going."

"The witches told me there was something to see over here. I saw it," Hayley added.

"Oh, none of you are any fun," Kol pouted. "You're lucky Elijah says I'm not to kill you."

"Kol," Rebekah's voice came from down the hall in warning.

"You sure you lot don't want to stick around and bug Bekah with me?" he added hopefully as they drifted off.

Caroline sank back down on the bed and closed her eyes with a sigh. Before long, there was a heavy weight on her chest. She cracked an eye. "You know I died by suffocation, right? Making it difficult for me to breathe is so not in your best interests," she teased Klaus. He just shoved his nose under her hand, demanding she pet him again. "Are you sure you're not a real dog?" He scowled up at her with golden eyes. "Sure act like one," she just stated airily.

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	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Oh my gosh, guys, you really know how to give a girl a big head! Looking at the stats of this story compared to my other two chaptered fics has proven to me that it is, quite literally, my most popular story ever. The only thing it's behind the other two on is reviews. And, just as a note, one of those is completed and both of them have been out for years. I guess that's what I get for switching from obscure Harry Potter pairings (which, as a side note, is a really fun game because there is a fic for literally any two characters you can think of. I guarantee it. If you can get something more obscure than Harry/Harry, you win) to a very popular, very active fandom. A common theme in reviews is that people are fond of the tone of the piece. No worries, guys, I don't do serious. It'll stay lighthearted throughout because life's more fun that way. Plus, Caroline and Klaus are at their best when they're feisty and fun. One of my favorite scenes between them is the Miss Mystic Falls date. Finally, as a friendly reminder, this story is AU past TVD 5x13 (500 Years of Solitude) and the corresponding episode of the Originals. I never finished the first season of the Originals and the last episode of TVD I watched was Katherine's** _ **real**_ **death. Considering even the writers of the two shows have trouble keeping their canon and rules straight, I feel that this is an acceptable version of the way things could have gone. Sorry for the long, ramble-filled Author's Note. On to the show! I mean, story!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

Compelling the Tulane Board of Admissions had been an all-day task. Luckily, Elijah had been there to help, or Caroline would have gone insane. Klaus had, of course, forced himself into the car as they were leaving and followed her around like a lost puppy all over campus, waiting for her outside each building. Luckily his coloring lent well to the story they were going with—that he was a Husky although he was a rescue, so it wouldn't surprise them if he were part wolf—and compulsion was flowing freely, otherwise they would have had some trouble on their hands.

She was sipping her third blood bag of the day, exhausted beyond belief, when wolf-Klaus had finally left her alone for a few moments. She was in the formal sitting room of the mansion they were inhabiting, and she was thinking it would take a force of nature or an act of god to get her all the way back up to Klaus' room before she passed out.

"Ah, Niklaus, so good to see you as you," Elijah greeted from across the room. Caroline had her back to the stairs that led up to the bedrooms, but spun around at Elijah's pronouncement.

"Elijah," Klaus greeted swiftly. Then, a grin spread across his face. "Caroline."

"Oh good, you can talk again," Caroline muttered sarcastically, although she was secretly pleased. And she was upset at herself for being secretly pleased. She let out a groan and collapsed further on the sofa for good measure.

"Tired?" Klaus was over to her side in a flash, lifting her head before sitting down so that she was lying with her head on his lap.

"I just compelled half the staff of a university," she grumbled. "Luckily your brother was there to compel the other half or I would have ended up making a buffet of undergrad underclassmen."

Klaus chuckled. It was a genuine sound, almost proud, and not the mocking sort of laugh that she'd grown to associate with him. "And what is your major?" he asked, tracing a pattern on her arm.

"Philosophy with an emphasis on Pre-Law," she explained, "just like at Whitmore."

"Now that sounds interesting," Elijah said in his normal tone of voice. Caroline wondered if the Honorable Original was capable of sarcasm.

"Much better than abnormal psychology," Kol agreed, sliding down next to the elder Original.

"Huh?" Caroline asked, a bit lost at the reference.

"Camille is working towards a master's degree in abnormal psychology," Klaus explained.

"You mean Caroline 2.0?" she mocked, looking up at him. He scowled back down at her while Kol and Elijah chuckled.

"2.0 would suggest she is the better version of you, love, which is wholly untrue," Klaus shook his head.

"But she's totally my replacement." She grinned up at him wickedly. "Admit it, you needed someone who looked vaguely like me because you missed me."

"Caroline," Klaus was using his warning tone. She turned to his brothers for confirmation.

"She is less afraid of him than most," Elijah agreed.

"She totally fancies him," Kol added. "Bit of cosmic justice, really, whenever she tries to pet him like you do and he just snaps at her."

"She was convenient and singularly useful until the little witch broke the compulsion," Klaus grumbled. "Now she's an annoyance to be saved. Just like your quarterback," he added the last bit to Caroline, poking her slightly.

"Hey, Matt's a really good guy," she grumbled. "He just has terrible choice in friends. And girls. Definitely terrible taste in girls." She shuddered.

"Don't let Beks hear you say that," Kol grinned maliciously.

"Why? I'm totally insulting myself in that too," she pointed out. "In succession, he dated Elena, me, and Rebekah. Add in Katherine's crazy vampire daughter and you get a perfect four for four of dumb dating choices."

"I can't imagine you being a poor choice," Klaus grumbled.

"Now? No," Caroline shook her head. "And when he and I first started dating when I was human? Also no. But considering me and Matt were dating while I transitioned into the lovely vampire before you?" she shuddered. "Let's just say that almost killing your boyfriend and compelling him are not the things to do."

"No, I can see where that would be a problem," Klaus agreed.

Rebekah, who'd been patently avoiding Caroline, drifted into the room then. "Ah Nik. Looking less furry this evening," she greeted, completely ignoring Caroline. She was perfectly okay with this. If she didn't have to talk to Rebekah, she didn't have to fight with the Original Mean Girl. Mystic Falls had been all right: it was Caroline's home turf. Here, she was the outsider and she didn't need Rebekah Mikaelson rubbing her nose in that. Not when Caroline really wasn't sure why she was here in the first place.

The silence that reigned was deafening. Caroline could hear no less than three clocks, ticking out of sync with one another. The tension between the Orignals in the room was palpable. While the three brothers had an easy rapport with one another, it seemed either Rebekah or Klaus had done something to the other lately and they were barely speaking to one another.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed," Caroline announced, sitting up and stretching. "Classes start tomorrow and I don't even want to think about the headache I'm going to have from all the compulsion." Klaus was on his feet the instant she was, taking her arm, leading her up the stairs.

She heard Rebekah say something disparaging about her character, but she was locked away in Klaus' room before she could even think of doing anything, not that she would have. The instant that was done, he pressed his lips (and body) against hers.

Her first reaction was to kiss back. This was Klaus, and above everything else, Caroline had to admit that he was a good kisser. And she liked him. In spite of everything, she did like him. But when his hands went to slip under the hem of her top, she pushed him lightly away.

"Klaus," it was her turn to use her warning tone. He didn't seem to register it and went back to attacking her lips. She was a bit quicker to push him away this time, another "Klaus," this time firmer and less open to interpretation.

He let out a growl, his lips puffy from the kiss for the brief moment before their unnatural healing ability would change that. "Look, I know about the curse. Elijah explained everything. Everything." She fixed his stormy grey eyes with her own. As much as she'd felt a connection when he'd stared at her with the golden wolf eyes, she preferred the grey-blue of his human ones. It was easier to read.

He remained silent and Caroline wondered if she was talking to the wolf again. "You didn't have any servants running around when they cast the spell, did you? Did any new furniture show up? Because that's a sign," she decided to joke. To lighten his stormy mood because he was not going to like the rest of what she had to say.

"There are no sentient candelabras, no singing cutlery," he replied with a smirk, humor lighting his own eyes.

"Elijah didn't get the reference yesterday," she told him. "I asked if the curse was represented by the rose and he just glared at me. It could also have been because I was laughing in his face." She smiled sheepishly (which was definitely not the kind of animal you wanted to be imitating in front of the Big Bad Wolf).

"Oh, I wish I'd seen his face," Klaus looked wistful. "What then?"

"I explained it was Beauty and the Beast and he mumbled something that sounded distinctly French and then asked me to, and I quote, 'explain the indignity of it all' to you." She grinned up at him.

"I believe this tale ends slightly differently than the animation," he said and he was back on the prowl, moving towards her predatorily.

"Woah, woah, woah. Back off there, wolf boy," she hastily backed away. "First of all, no yellow ball gowns. Yellow is so not my color," she gestured to her blonde hair and pale complexion. "Second, you are no Prince Adam. Beast or man, you're still all Big Bad Wolf. If anything, this is Little Red Riding Hood."

"The Sondheim version," Klaus agreed, nodding her on to continue. She grinned at the reference. Who knew Klaus was into musical theater?

"Like I was saying," she cleared her throat. "Even if we slept together right now, it probably wouldn't break the curse," she admitted.

He looked confused. Hurt, maybe. Caroline watched emotions flicker across his features. She was waiting for it all to turn to anger and the yelling to start. "You're here," he pointed out, his voice carefully controlled. "I love you," it was the first time he'd said it that way. It was always, 'You'll love me, Caroline,' or, 'I'll be your last love.' Never was it him admitting he loved her. "I really don't see what the problem is." There it was, the growl hidden in the controlled voice. A human wouldn't have seen the shift between playful young man to ageless Original, but Caroline could.

"The curse is broken by the act of _true_ love," she said slowly. "Not just any love. And sure, maybe you love me, but you barely know me. And I'm still struggling to admit that I like you," she explained. How was it that a girl with a scant two decades under her belt was explaining the concept of true love to a centuries old hybrid? "True love is the kind where both people would do anything, give anything, for one another. It's pure, unselfish while still being completely selfish." She shook her head. "I'm not ready. And if I've learned anything about witches, specific wording like that is important."

He grumbled and spun away from her. There was the anger, seeping out. She watched him carefully, knowing that at any moment it could boil over and express itself in destroying anything or anyone around him. Most people would be terrified in her shoes; Caroline was just waiting for him to try to close himself off, to verbally lash out at her to try to scare her.

"I did agree to come here," she said softly. Why was it that she wanted to fix this? To fix him? "I agreed knowing exactly what it meant. Not just because of the curse but because of all the things you've promised me, Klaus. Paris, Rome, Tokyo," she repeated. "Showing up on your doorstep. Talking about my first love, and my last. Showing me how to be honest with myself and what I want. There's no more small town boy, and I've left my small town life." With every repeated phrase, every reference to their past, she watched the tension in his shoulders tighten and then relax a little bit more.

"Elijah mentioned your reluctance today in the car," Klaus sounded sad, weary. "Did you explain to him all that this meant?"

"Of course not," Caroline scoffed. "This is our business, not his. I've just spent the last few years pretending to be normal, avoiding Mystic Falls, living my life. I wasn't exactly ready to jump back into the world of supernatural drama and risking my life against all these super powerful opponents. And even if our last couple encounters were pleasant, we do have a history. There are things you've done I can't forget, and I'm sure there are things that I've said and done that still pick at your mind. So yeah, I was reluctant. Can you really blame me?"

He was quiet and unreadable. Caroline wondered if her fix earlier had swiftly turned into a shot in the foot. She decided to keep quiet herself. If Klaus wanted to air this out some more, it was his turn. She stayed still and watched him pace.

"Why?" he turned on her, suddenly fierce.

"Why what?" Caroline returned lightly

"Why did you agree? What made you decide to come here, finally? And don't tell me it's because Elijah gave you no choice," he shot her a knowing look. "No one can make you do something against your will."

Caroline paused, thoughtfully. She hadn't really considered much of any of it. Elijah had threatened her, more or less, Cara Lynn had come in and Caroline had just decided she was leaving. She had gone from one extreme to the other.

Finally, she shrugged. "I don't know. I really don't. When I heard you were cursed, I had two reactions. One was 'Well of course. Klaus is an ass. Of course he pissed off some witches.' But the other reaction… Klaus, I _do_ care about you. I like joking with you, and talking, and we were friends once."

It was her turn to spin away, because it was too hard to look at him. "I guess I felt like I owed it to you, owed it to myself to actually try. I've been putting you off, and for what reason? All the excuses I've been using to not think about you or us are no longer relevant. How can I pretend to be mad at you for Tyler or for Elena or even Stefan, when I can't bear to talk to them anymore?"

In her emotional distress, Caroline hadn't heard Klaus approach her again, and was surprised when he wrapped arms around her from behind. "That is more than others would do in your place, love." He nuzzled against her face, his stubble scratching lightly at her cheek. "Some might suggest that I deserve every punishment I receive."

She pressed back into him. "They're wrong, you know. While you may be a complete ass, there is still a man inside there, with real emotions. And you've had your share of rough days. 52 years of the Hunters' curse?"

"That one, particularly, was undeserved," Klaus pointed out. "They were the first to dagger each of my siblings."

"And if they had known you had the werewolf gene induced rage magnified times one hundred, they probably would have realized that was a bad idea," Caroline agreed, closing her eyes as he nuzzled closer.

"What is your plan for all of this?" he asked her. "What are your intentions, Caroline?" he purred her name in her ear. She suppressed the shudder that wanted to run through her body.

"We give this a try. That's it. That's the plan." When Klaus made a slightly confused noise against her neck, she replied, "Plans always get derailed and nothing ever works out the way you plan, so if I keep it simple, a single sentence, it has the best chance for success. So we try. We just try our best." She hoped that would be enough.

* * *

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	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Wow guys. Just wow. You guys keep making me feel so great. All the reviews after posting the last chapter were amazing. For all of you demanding I write more, no worries. The story is complete, and I'll continue to post daily as best I can. All the reviews and faves and follows and that really make me want to keep posting as fast as possible. And I'm working very hard on the sequel. I know some of what I want to do, it's just getting there. Here we see a new character, an OC of mine, so be gentle. Or don't, actually. He's fun to write so I'm going to keep him. Oh, and if it says TRANSITION that's a scene transition. I initially meant to put the line breaks in to replace them when I got to the site, but I think TRANSITION is funnier so I left it in. I have no self-control. Anyway, I can't think of anything else that needs mentioning here, so have at it!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

Caroline had taken a few of Whitmore's Occult Studies courses, mostly to have class with Bonnie. Still, it had been interesting and useful, and it counted toward some of her major and minor requirements, which was never bad. Also, the upper level classes had kept her aware of the pseudo-supernatural community at the school.

Which was why her first class at Tulane was an Occult Studies discussion. She needed to know the lay of the land, believers, fake believers, real witches, the occasional vamp or wolf that stumbled in. The Occult Studies classes were the fastest way to make sure you weren't making a supernatural scene. In a town like New Orleans, Caroline knew, it would be hard to make a splash. The place was crawling with the supernatural. Still, it would be nice to get an opinion outside of the epicenter that was Klaus.

"You're not the usual type you find in Occult Studies." The guy who sat down next to Caroline was of average height, brown hair in one of those hipster styles that was becoming popular, and decent-looking jeans and a sweater. Caroline pegged him as a history major, but there was something else about him.

She quirked an eyebrow, not offering anything. "Sorry, Jesse Parsons," he added.

"Caroline Forbes," she introduced herself. She was glad he didn't offer his hand, because she was almost certain he was a witch. Warlock. Whatever. "I'm not sure if I should be insulted, or what."

"No, no, it's just that these kinds of classes usually have three types of people: the weirdoes who find all this stuff weirdly interesting, the crazies who actually practice it, and the anthro and history majors that are forced to look at this in the greater sociological picture." He grinned.

"Which one are you?" Caroline asked.

He didn't answer, just grinned. "So why are you here?"

"Philosophy major," she said with a shrug, as if that explained it all. It made her look like a rich daddy's girl skating by on her free ride (she'd never been able to pull off the stoner vibe), trying to find a husband, but that didn't bother her. Since she'd died, she'd realized that being underestimated was a huge asset.

The class started after that, the professor handing out the syllabus with typical discussion questions and the reading. Caroline was pleasantly surprised to see that some of the external readings were from her Whitmore textbooks. In fact, a lot of the topics mentioned in the syllabus were things that the Whitmore Occult Studies classes had covered in the early classes.

The professor let them out early (something Caroline had learned to see as a blessing, something that happened more and more rarely as she got into the more and more advanced classes), and Caroline headed out of the building onto the lawn where Klaus was waiting for her (he had, once again, forced himself along for the ride when Elijah had dropped Caroline off on campus).

"Hey there, Klaus," she said, rubbing his head as if he really was a dog and not a very dangerous, very old Original Hybrid. "We need to talk Elijah into compelling someone to get my car from Virginia." Klaus leaned into her touch.

"Woah, big dog there," Jesse came up behind her. "What's his name?" he added, reaching down to pet Klaus.

"I wouldn't do that," Caroline warned quickly. "He's kind of like a cat in that he doesn't let just anyone pet him." Jesse looked a little confused, but withdrew his hand. "Klaus. His name is Klaus," she added, answering his question.

"Are you like weirdly German?" Jesse quirked an eyebrow. Caroline felt a growl forming in Klaus' throat and leaned into his side as a warning.

"It's actually Nordic," she explained. "There are rumors that my hometown was first settled by Vikings, and there are some runes carved into a cave that they use for proof. I used one of the names written out in runes for him."

"Sorry, I got distracted by your… dog," he looked at Klaus again, probably realizing that he looked a lot more like a wolf. "I feel like I should explain why I approached you. It's kind of my fault that we got off on the wrong foot and I wanted to give it another try." He flashed her a charming smile and Caroline realized that he was kind of flirting with her. Two weeks ago, she probably would have gone for it too.

"Oh, that's okay. Trust me when I say it's not the worst way I've met someone." Caroline thought back to the first time she set eyes on Klaus. It had been in the MFHS building, and Klaus was using Tyler for his hybrid experiment. Her boyfriend was dying in front of her and all Klaus was doing was tormenting all of her friends to hurry up and fix his problem.

He must have been thinking the same thing, because he pressed harder against her leg and let out a low whine.

"I'd hate to be that guy," Jesse responded to the look on her face.

She tangled her fingers in Klaus' fur again. "He turned out to be pretty all right, actually," she replied. "It was just a bad first impression. He's spent every moment since trying to make up for it."

"I take it bad first impression guy is now your boyfriend," Jesse guessed.

"Pretty much," she agreed.

"Still, I think we should be friends. Or discussion buddies," he explained. "You seem like the most normal person in that class. And you care more about the historical context than learning how to do spells."

"Well, when you say it like that," she grinned. "We have to go, though. I just transferred, and I should really be finding my Renaissance Thinkers class so that I'm not late on my first day."

"I can show you where it is. I don't have class for another couple hours, and I can take some of my library time to show you to your class." He grinned at her. She listed out the building and the classroom number for him.

They started walking, but Klaus determinedly walked between them. She could almost feel the alpha male vibes radiating off of him. Klaus' dominance posturing was a well-known variable but it was different when he was actually a wolf and it made sense.

"So, where exactly are you from?" Jesse asked. "Where did you go to school before?"

"I went to Whitmore College in Virginia," she explained. "I'm from a small town not too far from the school, so it made sense. What about you? Are you a New Orleans native?"

"Oh, no. I'm from Chicago. I just wanted to get as far away from there as possible. Tulane gave me the best scholarships, so here I am. Why did you transfer here?" He tried to walk closer to her, but Klaus pushed her further to the side, sending a clear signal.

"My boyfriend got a job here. I ultimately followed him." She shrugged.

"So you're pretty serious about this guy?" he asked.

"Yeah," she sighed, thinking about how much she could really say about the situation. She was pretending to not be a vampire with this guy who was pretending to not be a witch. "We were kind of that 'Will they or won't they?' couple for a really long time. Generally when my last boyfriend, which was one of those on again off again relationships, and I were at the off again." She shrugged. Klaus nudged her lightly, his tail smacking across the back of her leg. "Now that it's me and K-Nik," she caught herself, realizing that it would be weird if her 'dog' and her boyfriend had the same name, "it's one of those 'finally' moments, you know?"

"I get it," he agreed. "Can't say I'm not jealous, but still, even if I barely know you, I know he's a lucky guy."

They arrived at her class building and Caroline waved both Klaus and Jesse off. She heard Jesse mumble to Klaus when he thought she was out of earshot. "What is a girl like her doing with a wolf for a chaperone?"

TRANSITION

Kol picked Caroline up from school (she half wished it had been Elijah again. He was boring, but much less likely to rile Klaus up into a frenzy for no reason but his own amusement). Instead of taking her back to the manor, he said they were going to get a meal. Caroline had no delusions about that meal being anything other than blood.

Klaus maintained his position between Caroline and whatever he perceived to be a threat. As they walked along the New Orleans streets, that was Kol, though she had no doubt that if a witch or one of the other vampires walked by, he would choose to trust his brother over them.

"You never did tell me what witch thought it was good idea to bring you back from the dead," Caroline informed the Original.

"From what I understand, someone caught wind that Nik and I were fighting when I died, and therefore thought that resurrecting me would be a useful tactic against my brother. That was obviously untrue, but the witches have been working toward doing the same with the rest of our family members. We were expecting our parents and Finn to return during the last full moon, however they ended up using that to curse Nik. They'll probably use the next instead."

"Oh good," Caroline grumbled sarcastically. "Not only is Klaus stuck as a wolf for the foreseeable future, but your crazy relatives are going to try to kill all vampires. Again."

"A little more reluctant to see me and my brother dead now, aren't you?" Kol grinned, turning down an alleyway. Caroline almost groaned at the cliché of it all.

"Of course. Although, better you than Klaus, considering he's responsible for my line." Caroline smirked her most mischievous smirk.

"I never said that," Kol responded lightly.

"Klaus did," she stated firmly. "So, where's dinner?" she asked, looking around the alley finally.

"Wait here. Nik would kill me if I made you do the heavy lifting," Kol grinned in a way that reminded Caroline of Klaus.

"Sexist pigs," she grumbled, knowing Kol could hear her, although it was mostly for the smug looking wolf sitting next to her feet.

While she was waiting for Kol's return with some unsuspecting tax broker or something, one of the doors in the alley opened up and she spotted Jesse coming out with some trash. He was wearing a bar t-shirt, so she figured he was working.

"Caroline?" he looked confused.

"Yup," she said, drawing herself up when he noticed her. So much for not being one of the weirdoes.

"What are you doing out here?" he raised a bemused eyebrow.

"Oh, you know," she shrugged lamely. Kol was probably listening in from the street, definitely not about to swing in to her rescue, and Klaus was stuck as a wolf for another couple of hours. It had been a long day and she really didn't want to make up an excuse, and all of her instincts were shouting that Jesse couldn't be compelled.

He shook his head. Clearly he didn't know. "Lost?" he guessed.

"Not quite. My boyfriend's younger brother, who is my ride this evening, has a… strange sense of humor. I guess it's only fair after the little stunt some of my friends pulled on him back when they were staying in my hometown," she shrugged, knowing the explanation would leave him more confused than anything.

"I wish I could help," he said sympathetically. "Unfortunately, I'm working." He held the trash up in explanation. "Hey, how about I give you my number. I'll be your ride next time you need one."

"Uhh," she paused, glancing down at Klaus. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm pretty sure my car is going to make its way from Virginia down here very soon. The move was kind of impromptu, but my boyfriend's family is helping me get everything in order."

"Still," he said, "I feel like I should give you my number." He pulled a pen out of the apron tied around his waist and grabbed her hand before she could do anything. His flinch was almost imperceptible, but she'd been around Bonnie long enough to know how witches reacted to the supernatural. Still, he scrawled a number across the back of her hand. "At the very least, we're study partners in our discussion, right?"

"Right," she agreed with a tight smile. "See you Thursday."

When he was gone, Kol reappeared with a heavily compelled businessman. "What the hell was that?"

"A witch with a death wish," Caroline grumbled. "He just doesn't know it yet." She glanced down at Klaus, who seemed upset to say the least.

"Nik is going to be a right terror when he shifts later," Kol nodded in agreement.

"Twice. He's flirted with me in front of Klaus twice," Caroline added ruefully. Kol took that cue to glance down at his brother. He smiled at Caroline in sympathy.

"You'd better break this curse soon," Kol suggested. Caroline wished it were all that simple.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey there! Back again with another chapter. A few quick notes. This story now has more reviews than any of my others (it outstripped the others in faves and follows a few chapters ago) and I'm so very grateful to all of you. It's the positive response that I've gotten that keeps me editing, updating, and even writing the sequel. As a warning, this chapter is explanation heavy, getting our good friend (and my OC) Jesse up to speed with the rest of the cast. As such, there's a lot of summarizing info from the actual series (SHOCK! AWE!). I may have gotten some details wrong, even if I have just re-watched the first four seasons of TVD (I had to stop because anything after that aside from our few Klaroline scenes and Silas sass pretty much make me want to vomit). There's a LOT of mythology behind the show and even the creators have trouble keeping their mythos straight. So, if there are errors in who was daggered when, sorry. There are a lot of characters, a lot of backstories, and a lot of rules to keep straight, and I'm doing my best, but I'm only human (much to my eternal chagrin). But hey, if you notice something amiss, feel free to leave me a review and I'll take it under advisement! Maybe even give you credit in the next Author's Note.**

 **Before I get to the story, I want to mention that one of the related one-shots, a vignette called "On Temperaments and Flowers" from Elijah's point of view will be coming out in one of the next couple of days. Keep an eye out for it, and I will let you know in the Author's Note of the chapter that comes out after I post it. Still, I want to make sure you guys catch it, because I'm really proud of the vignettes that I've written to accompany this piece.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

"He's a werewolf, isn't he?" Jesse asked in a whisper as he slid into his desk for their discussion class. "I've never met one—they're super rare—but I thought it had to be the full moon for them to turn."

Caroline resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Have you ever met a vampire before either?" she asked quietly, an eyebrow raised.

"Of course," he hissed. "Chicago is crawling with them." Caroline recalled Damon and Elena discussing Chicago and Klaus in conjunction with Stefan's Ripper days and suppressed a groan.

"Of course he would," she grumbled anyway. Turning back to Jesse, she continued to question him, "What exactly do you know about them?"

"Uh, the usual. Vervain, not garlic. Stake to the heart. Spirits don't like you messing with death." He shrugged.

"Ever heard of the Originals?" she asked.

"The Original vampires, Miss…?" the Professor had caught them as he started class.

"Forbes," she completed. "And yes. We were discussing the legend of the Original vampires. Or, I was hinting at it."

"You know, the only time I've heard that legend referenced was back when I was researching my Masters thesis, working with Sheila Bennet," he looked at her with interest.

"Her granddaughter was one of my childhood friends," Caroline explained, her smile tight. This was not going to plan.

"Her loss had a profound impact on the community," her professor explained. "She was one of the foremost experts in the field."

Caroline nodded, not sure what to say. "Unfortunately, the legend of the Original vampires is not something we will cover in this course. There's no real historical evidence of anything of the sort, however interesting it may be…" He continued on, moving to the reading they'd been assigned and the starting the class at talking about it.

Jesse kept sending her odd looks as the class went on and on. She would have to vamp out if she was going to have any hope of avoiding talking about it. And explaining her situation to an uninvolved party was a bad idea.

Unfortunately, she couldn't whoosh out without arousing the suspicion of her more mundane classmates. Her only hope was that her professor would want to chat about Bonnie's Grams after class, although she was pretty sure he didn't care all that much.

True to form, she had no choice but to deal with Jesse following her out of class. He didn't say anything in the building, but as soon as they were outside, he started in on her. "Original vampires? Bennet witches? What the hell aren't you telling me?" he all but shouted. Nobody but the Original Hybrid who'd swiftly joined them seemed to notice.

"It's honestly none of your business," she turned on him suddenly. She fixed him with a glare that had him flinching. She knew wolf-Klaus was looking smug at her side. "You know what I am, I know what you are. And just so you're aware, New Orleans is crawling with vampires too. And witches and wolves. Have fun."

He grabbed her arm, spinning her back around. "No. I knew all that. I'm not completely blind. They're all at war, too. Now tell me what you were going to before class."

"Perhaps, Caroline, you ought to show him," Elijah's calm voice suggested behind her. A tremor of fear ran through her. Klaus she could handle. Elijah was just disconcerting.

"Is this that boyfriend of yours that you keep mentioning? The one who gives you a werewolf bodyguard?" Jesse asked angrily.

"No, my idiot boyfriend got himself cursed into his wolf form unless the moon is out," Caroline was well and truly angry now, lashing out at everyone around her. "This is his older brother, Elijah."

"So you're dating a werewolf," Jesse put together, glancing down at Klaus who had his hackles raised. "Isn't that completely against your respective natures?"

"Come along, before you three attract too much attention," Elijah said more firmly. "All of this can be discussed at length back at the manor."

Klaus growled at his brother, clearly upset about Jesse. "We can't compel him to forget, Klaus. He's a witch," Caroline ground out at the wolf.

"And explaining will be much easier at home, Niklaus, where Kol and Rebekah can help to protect young Caroline," Elijah added, staring the wolf down.

Klaus huffed off to Elijah's SUV to wait. Caroline turned back to Jesse who looked a little put-out to have been treated like he wasn't there. "I hope you don't have any more classes today," she told him not unkindly. "Elijah doesn't really take no for an answer."

Jesse nodded mutely, looking between the three of them wildly. Caroline figured he was from a pretty powerless witch line, all things considered. If he had been stronger, he would have been much more aware of the Originals, and he probably would have joined with the locals witches.

The ride back to the Mikaelson home was tense. Elijah was silent, and Jesse was in the front seat messing with the radio nervously. Caroline had elected to sit in the backseat because Klaus was the least likely to bite her of anyone. She ran a hand through his fur absentmindedly, but he was tense, radiating anger.

When they stepped through the door, Caroline whooshed over to the liquor cabinet, knowing that it would help to soothe her agitation. As she poured herself a shot of whiskey, she watched Jesse stand nervously just inside the door. Elijah was taking his time heading over to the small bar, probably to fix himself a glass of scotch, which seemed to be his drink of choice. Klaus was playing king of the house, sauntering lazily around the front room.

"Sit, Jesse," Elijah said, gesturing to the sofas in the room. "Would you like me to fix you a drink?"

Jesse looked a little stunned as he stumbled over to one of the couches and sat on the edge of it. When Elijah continued to look expectantly, he realized there had been a question in there somewhere. "Oh, um, no thanks."

"Very well," Elijah nodded. He poured two glasses of scotch and brought them both over to the sofa opposite Jesse. He kept one and set the other on the table, clearly for Klaus who was striking an intimidating figure as he watched the entire room with a piercing golden gaze.

"Caroline, perhaps you can enlighten young Mr. Parsons to the details of your stay here, starting with meeting my family?" Elijah suggested mildly. When Jesse's eyebrows raised further in shock, Elijah added, "Yes, Jesse, I know who you are. I make it my business to know all of the witches in town. My brother's disposition makes it necessary." Elijah gestured at Klaus lazily.

"Right," Caroline agreed when he was finished. "Have you heard of the Curse of the Sun and the Moon?" Caroline asked him tightly. When Jesse nodded, she continued. "It was made up. By these two. See, Klaus, Elijah and their siblings were the first vampires. Their mother was a witch and created vampirism so that none of them had to die.

"That would have been enough, of course, but Klaus… well, he was the product of an affair between the Original witch and one of the werewolves that inhabited the area that they settled. So when he made his first human kill, he triggered the werewolf gene, only that would make him a hybrid, not bound by the typical weaknesses of vampires. He was a hybrid. So his mother locked up his werewolf side, leaving him a vampire… admittedly with a few perks."

Caroline hadn't thought about all of this history in years. Not since Klaus had completed the ritual and regained his wolf side. "To unlock it again, he needed a doppelganger, a moonstone, a werewolf, and a vampire. The last two were easy enough, especially when you told them that to break their dedication to the moon and the sun respectively, you needed the first two things. Which is why he created the Curse of the Sun and the Moon."

Jesse nodded. This seemed to fit in with whatever legends his witchy relatives had told him and things he'd learned in his Occult Studies courses. "Unfortunately for Mystic Falls, Virginia, all of these things were found there. It's kind of an epicenter of supernatural activity. Which is really annoying when you just want to live out your afterlife in piece," Caroline grumbled, thinking of all the reasons she'd left her friends, left her home.

"As you might be able to tell, my brother was able to break the curse," Elijah gestured at his brother, taking up from Caroline's clumsy explanation. "My brother was pleased that after a thousand years, he was finally able to make more hybrids like him."

"Of course, our mother, crafty as she was, put a failsafe into her curse." Kol, it seemed, had heard them and decided to join in the discussion. "You see, he was supposed to kill the doppelganger to break the curse. But the failsafe was that Klaus couldn't create hybrids without the blood of the doppelganger. Clever piece of spellwork, that. Of course, I, like the rest of my siblings, was stuck in a box at the time, all but dead."

"Klaus went to the Appalachians where one of the larger packs of werewolves spent full moons running wild with no worries about hurting innocents," Caroline took back up as the only one who'd been conscious at the time. "He tried turning all of them without waiting and trying on just one first. They drank human blood to complete the transition, but it didn't take. All of the failed hybrids went rabid before promptly dying.

"In a last ditch effort, he decided to turn my then-boyfriend, who was a werewolf. We had a Bennet witch in town, my friend Bonnie, with access to the kind of magic and grimoires to figure out what the problem was. He had all of our friends trapped so that she'd actually do as she wanted, and he fed Tyler his blood before killing him." Caroline paused here. She remembered her first glimpses of Klaus, clouded by the hatred she held for Tyler.

"One of Caroline's best friends happened to be the doppelganger," Rebekah explained then, descending the stairs like a princess in a Disney movie. Caroline resisted the urge to scream. "The witch did as asked, Klaus fed the doppelganger blood to the boy, and he survived, sired to Nik after being saved from the pain of turning into a werewolf every full moon."

"Having your boyfriend sired to the guy all of your friends are trying to kill is kind of a relationship killer," Caroline added pointedly. "Also, crazy, convoluted plans involving the vampire vampire hunter who happens to be the father of the Originals? Misguided. Especially when paranoid hybrids—" here she paused to send a pointed look at Klaus only to realize he'd disappeared. Was it really that close to moonrise? "—use that opportunity to kill him."

"Now, I believe, is the part where your friends stole the coffins he used to seal away my siblings, my mother, and me," Elijah suggested. "Eventually he found you out, you stole the sealed one containing our mother and returned the rest."

"Bonnie and her mom undid the seal, letting your crazy mom out," Caroline nodded in agreement. "In a desperate play, Damon and Stefan let you out and you let your siblings out."

"My mother played nice," Elijah agreed, "though in reality, she and Finn, our last brother, were trying to end all of us. All vampires."

"More desperate plays, more quick thinking," Kol added. "We all made it out mostly alive. Well, there was that nasty business with Finn, but it's been forgiven. He always was Mother's pet and a complete bore. There's a reason Klaus left him in a box for 900 years."

"The rest of the Mystic Falls days aren't really necessary," Klaus said, descending. Jesse, who'd been taking everything in stride up until then, finally let out an audible gasp of shock. Klaus was looking even more regal and alpha male as a man than he did as a wolf, and Caroline guessed the witch could feel Klaus' impressive aura more strongly than any of them. "What is necessary is telling the boy why you're actually here, Caroline." She was always impressed how just the sound of her name coming from Klaus could make her heart clench and shoot heat straight between her thighs.

"You do it then, Mr High-and-Mighty," she shot him a firm stare (she couldn't quite muster the anger needed for a glare).

He nodded, an amused smile just for her on his lips. "The witches took it upon themselves to curse me so that I can only appear human when the moon is out. Otherwise, I'm stuck in my wolf form. Rather detrimental when you're trying to rule the unruly supernatural population of a city like New Orleans," he explained, fixing Jesse with a predatory stare. He looked every bit the Big Bad Wolf.

"A curse that can only be broken by true love," Kol added in what was his approximation of a supportive manner. Mostly, he was just a shit-stirrer.

Jesse swiftly put that information together and looked between Klaus and Caroline a few times wildly before settling on Caroline who shrugged. "My uncle warned me of an evil, ancient vampire known only as Klaus," he said slowly, a look of horror settling on his features.

Caroline watched Klaus' grin spread across his face, smug and dangerous. She rolled her eyes. "At least have the decency to look a little guilty or repentant or something," she chided him.

"He's spent a thousand years working very hard at his reputation as a monster," Rebekah replied. "He wouldn't want a little witch to see him going soft, even if it is over some girl." She sneered at Caroline, but it was the first time she'd directly addressed the other girl in the entire time she'd been there.

"Of course," she rolled her eyes. "God forbid anyone think he's anything less than a crazed serial killer." Her voice dripped with sarcasm.

The girls shared a look. Had they just bonded? Caroline didn't think so, but then, Rebekah always had been difficult to understand. One second she wanted friendship and kindness, enough to compel it, and the next she hated everyone around her.

"Niklaus, he's not worth it," Elijah drawled lazily and Caroline's attention snapped back to the boys. Klaus was inching toward Jesse, looking ready to kill.

"He knows our secrets, Elijah. We can't compel him to forget, and I've no doubt he'll run right to the witches to tell them of Caroline. They can't know about her, not until the curse is broken and I can protect her myself," he shot his brother a sharp look.

"He's from Chicago," Caroline said quietly. All the heads snapped to look at her. "He can practice magic outside the French Quarter. And if I've learned anything from my time as a vampire, it's that having a witch on your side makes all the difference."

"We have witches," Rebekah said slowly. "Between Marcel and Kol, Davina is more cooperative than not."

"But she's a local," Kol said slowly. "She's connected to all the others. They share power. If the others and their ancestors disapprove, her hands are tied. This one answers only to the spirits. He may be weaker, but he can practice wherever he pleases. Even here, or in the heart of wolf territory."

"I admit, the idea has promise," Elijah agreed.

"Caroline has offered you your life, little witch," Klaus told the boy. And looking at the two, Klaus was a man where Jesse was a boy. Caroline had had her fair share of boys. She was ready for a man.

Jesse let out a huff. "I guess I don't have a choice, do I?"

"I mean, you did flirt with Caroline in front of my brother, who's been smitten with her practically since he met her," Kol pointed out. "You're lucky he didn't just rip your throat out in the alleyway yesterday."

Jesse let out a humorless laugh. "Well, congrats. You have a new pocket warlock, free of all the confines of New Orleans witches."

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	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Step one: have you read the Elijah one-shot yet? It doesn't really matter where it falls in the story, but it's out and I'm quite proud of it. Step two: the last chapter was my most controversial ever! For those of you who weren't so fond of the last chapter, I would like to point out a couple things. One, it may surprise you to note that a writer is not actually in charge of their story. Sometimes the characters just do things on their own. Occasionally, dog animagi just stick their tongues in werewolves' ears and there's nothing you can do. Caroline and Jesse were supposed to dance around each other for a lot longer with the whole witch/vampire secret. Instead, the last couple chapters happened. Two, it has been expressed that some people found it out of character, but imparting inappropriate secrets and inopportune times is pretty much the show. I'm not saying I approve of such things, I'm just saying that it's about the only canon they really stick with. Finally, I apologize for any Elena hate that shows up in the rest of the story. I tried to keep it to a believable minimum, but Elena is, in my opinion, one of the worst characters in the show (I won't bore you with the novel I could write about it). Just let it be said that childhood friends** _ **can and do**_ **grow apart. Just a forewarning because I don't remember what I wrote on the subject in later chapters. All right! On with the show!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

Due to Klaus' strange schedule, Caroline had been keeping strange hours since she'd arrived in New Orleans. As such, as soon as her classes were over on Friday, she trudged up to his room and curled up for a nap. When they were out at Tulane or really anywhere in the city, he stuck close to her side, no matter the time of day, but when they were at the house, he wandered off while the sun was out. From what she could tell, it was usually to pace thoughtfully in his art studio or the study/library that Elijah used as an office of sorts.

When they finally did sleep most nights, she started out curled around Klaus, but always woke up with the wolf at the foot of the bed. Which is why she was surprised, waking up from her nap with Klaus' fingers curled lazily in her hair, his other arm resting across her, his hand on her back.

"What time is it?" she asked, scooting closer, snuggling into him. Physical affection was easy with him. Arranging the jumbled mess of their assorted feelings was the sticking point. Too much negative history, too many Klaus assassination attempts and distancing techniques on her side and too many dead and injured friends coming from him.

"9:30," he said, his grip tightening around her.

"It's been awhile since I've had to keep vampire hours as well as maintain a minimum school attendance," she yawned into his collar. "'m out of practice," she slurred.

"I don't like the witch," he informed her succinctly.

"Necessary evil," she returned.

He sighed. "I know. But he fancies you." As if that was news to Caroline.

"He has good taste," she teased, softening it by looking up and kissing his stubbled chin. His possessive, but pleased growl hummed through her body. "I've been keeping him at arm's length since day one," she added to appease him. "I made it very clear that I was seeing someone and since I moved from states away, implied it was pretty serious."

Suddenly, she was on her back, Klaus looming over her. "How serious?" he asked.

She reached up, looping her hands behind his neck, pulling his face to hers. "Does it matter? I'm here, in your bed and have been every night for the past week," she pointed out. "And now that he knows my boyfriend is actually the witch version of the boogeyman he might be a little bit more reluctant with the flirting."

She tugged him further and pressed a kiss to his lips. A kiss to remind Klaus why she was there in the first place. His response was languid and teasing. She responded to him in a way that she'd never responded to anyone else. Her body seemed to know what her mind refused to admit. Well, that and it was remembering an afternoon romp in the woods on the Salvatore property.

He rolled them, human speed, human strength, until she was on top, straddling him. She pulled away from the kiss to look at him amused but confused. He closed his eyes with reluctant restraint. "I need you to be in control, love. You know where the limits are." His grip on her hips tightened. Had she been human, it would have been bruising, bordering on bone crushing.

"Okay," she nodded slowly. She leaned down and kissed him lightly. "Before you tried to bite her, I was kind of jealous of Caroline 2.0," she admitted in a whisper against his lips. His eyes shot open and she grinned, getting the reaction she'd wanted.

"Camille?" he asked in shock. "But I said—"

"I know. But anyone who knows you thinking she's a candidate for curse breaker?" Caroline shook her head. "Plus, the physical resemblance is a little on the nose, don't you think? And I saw the stubborn set of her jaw, and the way Elijah and Kol talked about her?"

In an instant, they were sitting, still face to face, Caroline on Klaus' lap. Before he could get a word out, Caroline held up a hand, stopping him. "I was insecure and jealous as a human," she explained. "So yeah, I'm jealous now. I just want you to know you're not alone in that."

"Your little speech from the other night is in direct contradiction to the way you're behaving right now," he informed her. His blue-grey gaze was stormy, a mix of emotions she couldn't pin.

She sighed, not sure how to explain her own mind a maelstrom of contradictory emotions. "I'm not the girl I was in Mystic Falls," she finally admitted. "A lot has happened since then, and even though for you, the amount of time that's passed has been a blink of the eye, for me, a few years is still something that makes a difference."

"Does this have something to do with cutting your ties with the doppelganger, the Salvatores and all the rest?" he asked her pointedly.

"Some of it," she nodded. "Things got… complicated. My mom… You know, I got so used to all the supernatural stuff, vampires and witches and paranormal problems, I felt like there was nothing we couldn't do. I mean, I know I'm not invincible, but I know my weaknesses, and I'm not human. But I forgot. I forgot that there were other kinds of danger out there, danger that was very real for my very human mom."

She hadn't known she was going to cry until she felt the tears dripping down her face. Klaus tugged her into an embrace, but she knew she had to finish the story. "There was this armed robber who was making a splash up and down the eastern seaboard. They got a tip that he was hanging out in a motel just outside of town, and when he went to hold up some gas station in Mom's jurisdiction, well… All of her deputies were running around on the newly-restored Founders' Council business because of course they were, and so Mom was stuck with a couple of rookies by herself. She got caught off guard, the guy got a lucky shot and killed her."

"I'm so sorry, love," he said sincerely. "For what it's worth, I was quite fond of your mother." A new wave of tears poured out of her eyes and her chest ached. Klaus pressed her further into him.

"When I found out, I hunted the guy down. Found him in his motel. Stupidly, he invited me in. Probably because I made it clear who I was, and he was going to shoot me too. He did shoot me; only regular bullets don't do much more than annoy me, especially when they're through and through. I compelled him not to make any noise, and then I explained to him exactly what I was going to do, all vamped out. He was terrified, which is what I wanted. I drank a little of his blood, broke a couple of bones, and then I ripped out his heart."

A silence descended upon them. Klaus rubbed soothing circles on her back as she tried to tuck the memories back into their box where they could be shoved to the back of her mind where she didn't have to think about them.

"I burned the body, then headed back to Mystic Falls for my mom's funeral," she added, realizing she hadn't gotten to the real reason she had unpacked the memories to begin with. "Once the town left and it was just me and the others, I felt myself breaking. The purpose I'd given myself with the guy's torture and death was gone and I knew I couldn't go back to the regularly scheduled Mystic Falls drama, not when it had gotten my mom killed in the first place.

"That was the closest I've ever come to flipping the switch and turning my humanity off. But I didn't. The last straw, of course was when Elena and the Salvatores called me on it. Elena accused me of thinking I was better than them. Sometimes you just need to turn your emotions off, she told me, to cope with all of the heightened emotions and the fallout that comes with being what we are. I hadn't wanted to snap her neck so bad since she turned her emotions off."

"So you left?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," she admitted. "I had one foot out the door anyway. Elena blowing up at me was just the final push I needed. I still talk to Bonnie sometimes, but as for everyone else," she shrugged. "Bridges were burned."

"And all you did with that time was continue your schooling?" Klaus pulled back to give her an amused grin.

"I'm pretty sure I told you about the plans and the future and all that the last time I saw you," she reminded him, mirroring his grin, but she could still feel the tears lurking, waiting to fall again.

"When we've broken this curse and you're on break from school, I'll take you anywhere you like," he assured her. "Paris? Rome? Tokyo?" he suggested, mirroring their conversation from long ago.

"You might have to compel me not to freak out on the plane," she admitted shyly. "I can barely manage on quick flights like the one with Elijah earlier this week, but international flights like that?" She shuddered at the thought.

"Imagine what the passage to and from Europe was like before flight was an option," Klaus suggested to her. "And blood bags are a modern invention as well. Weeks aboard a ship with me and my siblings usually ended with a dead crew and half-starved vampires."

Caroline nuzzled into his neck. "How often did you make the trip?" she asked.

"Not very, for just that reason," he admitted. "We only did it to escape Mikael. The first time was the worst. It was during the first century or two that we left for Europe. Most of us were born after my parents settled in what is now Mystic Falls, myself obviously included. Kol had a strange fascination with the Far East, so he travelled more than we did, but I mostly kept it to small jaunts between Europe proper, the British Isles, and Scandinavia. I made the trek to the New World again in the eighteenth century, settling here and staying in the Americas until air travel made it easier to travel without Mikael catching my scent."

"And the witches want to resurrect him," Caroline said mostly to herself, thinking about what Kol had told her.

"And Esther and Finn too," Klaus added. She was reminded of all they had done to kill him the last time.

"What if the witches can be convinced to resurrect someone else," she suggested, an idea suddenly coming to her.

"What do you mean?"

"They brought Kol back because word got out that you two had been arguing before his death, right?" She didn't pause to wait for a response, just continued, "Well, what if they brought back another of your supposed enemies?" she watched him excitedly, waiting for a reaction.

"Who?"

"Silas."

"What?"

"Think about it, he's perfect. He very publicly antagonized all of Mystic Falls and you teamed up with the Mystic Falls regulars who'd tried to kill you no less than three times at that point just to get rid of Silas." He nodded, showing he was with her so far. "But he also did everything to push the two of us together in spite of our very vocal objections and very obvious reservations," she reminded him. "I think he liked the idea of us together, which gives us leverage. And considering he can get in people's minds and trick them into thinking he's literally anyone else…"

He nodded thoughtfully. "It has potential," he admitted. "At the very least, it could put off the return of Mikael and the others."

* * *

 **Woah there, slow down friend. Leave a review. And if you haven't already, check out the Elijah one-shot "On Temperaments and Flowers" and leave a review there too. Who doesn't love a review?**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I got my first legit flame and because flames make me giggle, I decided to post. Also, I found a little more Elena hate for you lovelies, and it's at the end of the chapter. Ye be warned and all that. This chapter feels very filler-y and I apologize for that, but it couldn't be helped. We're getting people on the same page and trying to get our ducks in a row. Plus, I do remember a key vampire power in here, so points?**

 **I've lost a bit of the inspiration for the sequel (and, you know, found inspiration for other stories in other fandoms because my brain is an awful, fickle place), and because the chapters have been slow going over there, I've slowed the posting of these chapters to try to keep pace a bit. It doesn't help that I've been listening to the wrong music for this fic, this fandom. Hozier's self-titled album was kind of my soundtrack for writing this story, and that album gets me in the mood for some Klaroline now. It's a little dark and a lot bluesy and it just fits those too. Unfortunately, I've started listening to Bastille's** _ **All This Bad Blood**_ **again, which is my Bellarke (my** _ **The 100**_ **OTP for those who care) music. Music kind of shapes my inspiration for things, so it's important for my writing.**

 **Anyway, I've rambled long enough. Here's the chapter.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

"You must be mad," Kol grumbled, staring at wolf-Klaus and Caroline like they were crazy. Which they probably were. "You realize I lost my life the last time trying to keep you from bringing him back, right? What makes you think I'll agree to this plan now?"

Caroline was fairly certain Klaus had chosen the timing of all of this just so that he didn't have to deal with any of them, just growl and bear his teeth until his word was, quite literally, law. "Would you prefer three of your family members come back and conspire to kill all of you again? Because Mikael had you all running for centuries, and Esther and Finn nearly succeeded where he failed in less than a week," she pointed out. "Silas, on the other hand, can be bargained with. He doesn't care one way or another about vampires as a race, and he has a soft spot for me and Klaus."

"A soft spot?" Kol sputtered. "Elijah, brother, please talk sense," he pleaded.

"What exactly do you mean, Caroline?" Elijah asked instead.

"He, uh, kind of shipped us," Caroline explained as best she could. Rebekah let out an amused snort, understanding the language. Jesse looked like he'd swallowed a lemon, though he generally looked like that in the company of Originals. Kol and Elijah didn't seem to understand the terminology.

"He wanted us to get together," she explained a bit more their speed. "I was with Tyler at the time, and Klaus was still pretty much an ass to everyone I cared about, so it didn't actually go anywhere back then, but it set things in motion. I feel like we could probably bribe him with shows of our present affection, and if not, well how much worse can things get? One Silas is still preferable to three Mikaelsons out to kill the other four as well as, you know, me and all the other vampires out there."

"If he gets to be a real problem, the witches can always send him back," Rebekah added. "He's a wildcard. We don't know what he wants. We do know what Mikael and Mother and Finn want. It's a chance."

"At the very least, it will buy us another month," Elijah added. "They can return our family in one fell swoop because of the relation. This Silas is unrelated, and while twice our individual ages, combined, we have twice his and much greater numbers. It could work."

"You're all mad," Kol fumed. "You, warlock, what say you?"

"What do I have to do with any of this?" he looked terrified. "All I'm hearing is trading one scary creature for another, and something tells me that, whatever happens, I end up dead." He added in a dark mumble, "I should have gone up to the Res like Gramps suggested."

"You will not end up dead," Elijah responded carefully. "Not if we can help it. Silas is just the first step. A step we need to take sooner rather than later."

"Call Marcel," Rebekah stated decisively. "Have him bring Davina and whoever else by after moonrise. Since Nik decided that convincing us was beneath him, he can have the honor of bringing the rest up to speed."

Caroline spent the rest of the day showing Jesse around the manor, and Klaus padded alongside her, stopping proudly in front of some of his favorite pieces of art. Or, at least, what Caroline suspected were his favorite paintings. They would have to work on communicating while he was a wolf. She had some ideas, but didn't plan to voice them just yet.

"Who collects all this stuff?" he asked, staring at one of the more recognizable ones.

"Klaus," Caroline said in an affectionate voice. The wolf wagged his tail. "He's an artist himself, but the compulsion and the immortality make collecting a pretty easy task for him." She ran her fingers through his fur lightly.

"Why him?" Jesse asked suddenly, glaring at the wolf in question. "He's a monster. Every witch knows that."

"You heard the story. Me and my friends thought that too when we first met him. When we realized he had a crush on me, I quickly got cast as the blonde distraction. 'Oh, let's kill Finn while they're linked so we can take out Klaus. Caroline, go distract him so he doesn't notice we're killing his brother until too late,'" she did her best interpretation of Damon Salvatore. It was lost on Jesse, but it made her feel better. "'We need to unsire all the hybrids, Care,' 'We need to save Elena from the curse of hunters, Caroline,'" she shook her head. "Spend enough time with monsters and you learn that they're people too."

"All he does is leave a trail of bloody corpses behind him! He cares for no one!" Jesse seemed angry.

"You barely know him," Caroline pointed out. "He's prickly and difficult, sure, but he can also be kind and thoughtful. He's presumptuous, and kind of an ass, but he cares about me, and he wants me for me." She felt a weight press against her leg. It must have taken an enormous amount of restraint for Klaus to refrain from physical affection with her before all of this, before she'd let him in. Now that he could touch her at will, he did so frequently, especially as a wolf.

"Come on, Klaus," she was done talking to Jesse for now. She didn't care particularly for the way he was attacking Klaus, especially because he was unable to defend himself. Of course, now was probably the only time he had the courage to do so. "I have something I want to ask you about."

They entered his room and closed the door. Caroline sat on the bed, and Klaus hopped up next to her, dropping his head into her lap. "I had a thought," she informed the wolf. "There's that thing that vampires can do, put images and visions, dreams in your head." He picked his head up and cocked it to the side thoughtfully. "Can you do that like you are?" she gestured at his furry form.

He got up and started pacing, and she leaned back, listening to him padding back and forth. And then, suddenly, Klaus was himself, looming over her grinning.

"You did it!" she grinned back.

"I did," he agreed.

"And we can communicate now," she pointed out. "Even when you're a wolf." He nodded.

She popped up, wrapping him in a tight, excited hug. He returned the embrace slowly, as if he wasn't quite sure if it were real. "Do you know how difficult it is to figure out what you're trying to tell me like that?" she asked, pressing her nose into his shoulder, breathing in the scent of Klaus. He was clean and male and _Klaus_ , and she hadn't realized how important scent was until just now.

"I imagine it's as frustrating as when I wish to express to you and everyone around that you are mine," he grumbled. "Or when I desire to tell you how beautiful and incredible you are."

"I was so mad, you know, at Jesse, saying all those things about you when he's just met you. Criticizing me for caring about you." She scowled, looking up at him. His fingers tapped out a beat on her spine.

"I'd noticed," his grin was smug, but the look in his eyes was something different and far more pleasant. To Caroline's eyes, it looked like raw affection.

"I do like you, you know," she mumbled into his collar. He hummed in agreement. "You're not as bad as I always accuse you of being," she added.

"Caroline, love, I'm aware," he responded with a chuckle.

He ended the illusion not long after that, and she tucked herself into the homework that she had neglected during the week. Klaus laid down at the foot of the bed, napping.

She was deep into her analysis of a Sartre translation when her phone beeped angrily. As she blinked back into awareness, she realized it was the alarm she'd set for moonrise on her moon phases app (something that was all but necessary with a Cursed Hybrid Boyfriend). She nudged her foot into Klaus' side.

She'd never been present for his transition before, and she was guessing that was because it was painful for him in a way it had never been. He always went off somewhere else for the change. She had accidentally overheard the change one day, and it wasn't exactly pleasant. It was just the sound of breaking bones and heavy breathing, but it was the closest Caroline had seen to him showing pain since the time Silas had tricked him into thinking a piece of the white oak stake had splintered off into him.

Wolf-Klaus glared at her for waking him up, but she pointed to the time flashing on her phone. "Almost moonrise, buddy," she matched his anger head on. He was not fond of being woken up, Caroline was starting to realize, and the only thing she was good at was pretending his anger didn't scare her and instead butting heads with the stubborn hybrid.

He slunk off to the bathroom moodily, and managed to slam the door with his limited animal form. Caroline was slightly impressed. She tried to concentrate on her schoolwork, but as soon as the change started, the only thing she could do was listen in morbid fascination. The angry growls grew more and more human until finally, all she heard was him catching his breath followed by the rustle of clothes. She let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

When he emerged, he sank on the bed next to her, and Caroline curled into his side, showing her support as best she could. "What are you reading?" he asked gruffly. He was looking for a diversion. She would provide it willingly.

" _No Exit_. Jean-Paul Sartre," she said. "I'm supposed to be analyzing it for my Modern Philosophy class."

"I've never read the translation," Klaus admitted. "I've seen it performed in Paris a few times." Caroline raised her eyebrows in shock. "I'm a lover of all the arts," his tone sounded defensive, but he tugged on one of her curls playfully.

"All the French philosophers are super depressing," she rested her head on his shoulder, looking up at him sweetly.

Klaus chuckled. "You know, not all of the French are so depressing. Their equivalent playwright to Shakespeare was known for the farce as a genre," he told her seriously. "Shakespeare's dramas were downright dreary by compare."

"Yeah, tell that to my professor," she grumbled.

"Break the curse and I can," he reminded her, dragging her even closer to him. He pressed a kiss to her lips. "Mmm, I didn't want to do this this afternoon."

"Why not?" she asked before returning with a kiss of her own.

"When I kiss you, I want to know that you could have pushed me away but didn't," he admitted against her lips. She pressed their foreheads together.

"I wanted to kiss you then anyway," she admitted. "I miss you sometimes, when you're a wolf. I'm just getting used to you being around again."

"As cute as all of this is," Marcel's voice carried across the room, "I was informed that there was plan in the works."

Caroline did her best to disentangle herself form Klaus, but he kept her pressed to his side with an arm around her shoulder. Staring at her was Marcel, Camille, and two young people, a boy and a girl. The boy looked around the same age as Caroline actually was, and the girl was, almost certainly, the witch Davina. She heard Kol coming to join the party.

"We do have a plan. One that involves putting off the return of Mikael and the others for another month," a wolfish grin spread across Klaus' face.

"Last time he was here, he nearly razed the city, so I'm all ears," Marcel agreed with a shrug.

"There's an old legend," Kol began. "Davina may have heard of it, about an immortal named Silas."

"Silas?" they all looked confused.

"A couple thousand years ago, Silas convinced his betrothed to create a spell that would make them immortal so that they could spend eternity together. Only, he took the spell to his lover, her handmaiden, and made her immortal with him instead. His betrothed was pissed, cured the girl and killed her and left Silas to suffer eternity without her," Caroline summarized. "That's the popular version of the legend, anyway."

"Silas was born a warlock," Kol explained, "His lover was human save for the immortality spell. When she was cured and died, she went wherever humans go when they die. Silas, as a witch, could only go to the Other Side. So instead of taking the cure Qetsiyah provided him with, he did everything in his power to destroy the Other Side."

"How did he finally die?" Davina asked.

"Much in the same way you have Mystic Falls to thank for the death of two of my brothers, they also helped Qetsiyah reappear and kill Silas once and for all," Klaus was in his Mad Kind persona. Caroline stifled a giggle, thinking of Klaus in Game of Thrones terms.

"The thing is, though, is that Silas is the perfect candidate for the witches to bring back in the same way that Kol was. Most of Klaus' last actions in Mystic Falls were to stop Silas, and he's one of the most powerful witches of all time, what with the whole psychic magic thing. He's excellent at mind control," Caroline explained. "You can also suggest that Silas is what Klaus and Kol were fighting about when the Gilberts killed Kol, which means he could drive a wedge between the Originals, which is what the witches want, right?"

Davina nodded slowly, thinking it through. "Why is he a better option than Mikael, Esther, and Finn?" she asked finally.

"Because Silas ships me and Klaus," Caroline said with a wild grin on her face. Davina let out a small laugh at that. "Seriously, he got some sort of sick pleasure from forcing me and Klaus together."

"But you're the one that's trying to break the curse, right?" the boy asked, suddenly speaking up.

"Four years ago, I had a boyfriend and a plan, and my friends had spent the better part of two years trying to kill or otherwise get rid of Klaus before he paid them the same kindness," Caroline explained. "It's completely different." She couldn't exactly explain how things had changed, or why, but they had. Somewhere, Caroline had stopped seeing the shiny perfect sheen on her friends and had started seeing that they were making one mistake after another, ruining their lives and the ones around them.

Somehow, in all of that, all the things Klaus had done didn't seem so bad anymore. Klaus knew what he was doing. With every step, every kill, he knew that his black soul was growing blacker. But he made use of the strict progression from cause to effect. Klaus killed this loved one to get that person to do exactly as he asked. If Klaus was a chess master then Elena and her Salvatore lapdogs were making one hell of a mess with checkers and Connect Four pieces mixing together in unequal numbers scattered in the two games.

"Okay," Davina agreed with a nod. "At the very least, he's one person and not three."

"Two of which would only be killable by a weapon Klaus won't tell anyone where it is," Caroline pointed out. "Silas, at least, is just a witch. A powerful one, but he's not immortal anymore."

"So it's decided," Klaus nodded. "All of you can leave now."

* * *

 **What's that? You think things? About this chapter? Well, there's a handy box over there where you can leave a little message, a review, if you will. I'll just leave you to it, then…**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Wow, I apologize for how long getting this chapter out has taken. I've gotten distracted, what with my shows back on (I watch way too many superhero/comic book shows, and it's great), and the fact that my computer is literally falling apart, so when I** _ **do**_ **write, it's on my tablet, and this story is completely on my laptop, and then there's the bit where I've been way more inspired to write Bellarke (my** _ **The 100**_ **OTP) stories than the sequel to this, and I really do want to get this story's sequel written so that I can post that too. Excuses aside, as my apology, I plan to post the next "chapter" tonight as well, in about an hour or so when I've edited it. I use the term chapter loosely as it's the second related one-shot, but because it's told from Jesse's point of view, I think I'd rather post it here than as its own stand-alone story. As a final note, there's some Caroline and Camille bonding in this, some mild Elena-hate and Salvatore-hate, and things start to get a bit steamier and a bit closer to that M-rating starting here. Ye be warned and all that.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

When Caroline woke up, she was on the Salvatore property, pressed between a tree and Klaus. She felt his smirk against her lips as she tugged at the waistband of his jeans. He tugged her closer, palming her ass and she angled her hips to get just the right friction against him. He groaned into her mouth and it was her turn to smirk into the kiss.

She pushed him off with her vampire strength, more to get control of the situation than anything. His blue-grey eyes clouded over, dark with lust. His expression was stormy, the smirk from moments ago gone without a trace. She'd managed to remove his shirt somewhere and his pants were undone but still on. She drank in the sight of him hungrily.

"Caroline." His voice was husky, and it brought her back from her perusal of his body. Something felt off about all of this. Distantly, alarm bells were dinging in her head, but boy did she ever want to keep going. Kissing and touching and…

She managed to extricate herself from the vision Klaus had provided. "Reliving the greatest day of your life?" she asked the smug-looking wolf in front of her. She jostled his head playfully. He let out an undignified snort.

Things had been going well. Caroline spent her days in class, and her evenings curled into Klaus. The hybrid was making prolific use of his ability to provide Caroline with the very real feeling illusions when he was in wolf form to leave her feeling wound tight all day. And according to Kol and Davina, the witches had been successful in resurrecting Silas during the previous night's full moon. All in all, things were going according to plan for one of the first times in her paranormal life.

She got to campus and Klaus hopped out of her little Fiesta. No one seemed too concerned that there was a wolf running around Tulane. She wondered if one of the many witches had made Klaus a bit less obvious. It didn't seem like Jesse's style but then, he did have to hang out with her and therefore Klaus.

Jesse met up with her right away and she told him the news. "Kol and Davina stopped by last night. Our little plan was a success."

"That's good," he agreed neutrally. Caroline noted that he looked pretty worn out. It might have had something to do with the fact that he'd been forced to attend regular meetings at the Mikaelsons' each night and still attend class every day. Caroline was all-too-familiar with that kind of schedule from her Mystic Falls days, and she'd fallen back into it pretty quickly. It also didn't hurt, of course, that she was technically dead and as long as she kept blood in her system, she was more or less able to function normally on far less sleep.

"What's up?" she asked conversationally. "You look like a Mack truck just ran over you and your puppy."

He grinned, but didn't laugh, which was a sure sign that things were not good in Jesse land. "My brother's in town, crashing on my couch. And he keeps worse hours than your cursed boyfriend," he admitted.

"Your brother?" this was the first time Caroline was hearing about any of Jesse's family other than his typical, "Should've listened to Gramps" grumblings.

"Yeah. He's kind of a huge dick," Jesse admitted. "No patience for the art, uses it like a party trick to get chicks. Breezes in and out of town whenever he feels like it. I can't stand the dude, but he's family, so I'm stuck with him until he gets sick of New Orleans."

"He sounds like a real pain," Caroline admitted. She didn't have any siblings but she'd spent enough time with the Gilberts as a kid to think of Jeremy as her little brother too, and now that she was spending more and more time with the Mikaelsons, she was starting to grow attached to Klaus' siblings, learning what a very old, very dysfunctional family was like.

After getting their morning coffee, Caroline and Jesse headed off in separate directions. He had some history course or something and Caroline had her Modern Philosophers class, although she still had about an hour before that started, which usually meant sitting outside the Student Center with Klaus watching the other students go about their morning.

"Hello, Caroline," the slow drawl of her name was somewhat familiar. It was how Klaus had said her name before, back in Mystic Falls. She looked up to see Silas' approximation of her cursed boyfriend.

"Nice trick, Silas," she responded flippantly. Klaus growled where he was sprawled at her feet.

"No one told me he was cursed like that," the witch said, morphing back to his own face. It was strange seeing Stefan's features after how Caroline had left things, but the way Silas held himself and spoke was different enough that she could mostly ignore it.

"That's the point," she rolled her eyes at him. "If you were a super powerful hybrid trying to take control of a city in a decidedly comic book villain way, would you want people to know your weaknesses? You have us to thank for your resurrection, by the way. It was my idea in the first place."

Silas raised a single eyebrow. "Really. Now that's news to me. Because the witches were adamant that I kill Klaus so they could return me to my death."

"Really great incentives there," Caroline said sarcastically. "Makes Klaus' version look like a tropical vacation."

"Yeah, that's probably why I'm not going to do what they want," Silas shrugged a shoulder. "Instead, I'm going to live it up, cause mayhem, and generally play matchmaker for as long as I can. This place is an amusement park compared to Mystic Falls."

Klaus was up on his feet now, nudging Caroline, a wolf-scowl on his features. She pressed her fingers into his coat, sliding through the fur to touch skin and to give him pause. She wasn't done talking to Silas. In fact, she was thinking about skipping class altogether, something she hadn't done since Elena had left Whitmore and taken her vampire drama with her.

"I'm not disagreeing," Caroline responded. Klaus was getting growly and she slid her fingers up to his ears. She slid her fingers lightly across the velvety skin there. He sat back, wary but content. She was learning what he liked when it came to touch as a wolf and using it to her great advantage.

"I see you've got your Big Bad Wolf on a short leash," Silas joked.

"Dog puns. Very funny," she agreed calmly. "Klaus is Klaus. He'll do what he wants and there's no stopping him," Caroline added. "Just because what I want is currently in his best interest doesn't mean I can control him." The wolf in question wagged his tail.

"So explain to me everything that's happened on the Klaus and Caroline front?" Silas grinned at her and Caroline found herself missing when she'd had Stefan as her best friend. Salvatores were always going and ruining good things.

"Well, you died, we had sex in the woods, he left, and then we didn't see each other until a few weeks ago." Caroline shrugged.

"What changed a few weeks ago?" Silas' tone was airy, as if he didn't really care, but Caroline saw the serious look in his eyes.

She glanced down at wolf-Klaus pointedly. "His brothers think I can break the curse."

"How do you break the curse?" Silas asked. "No one will tell me."

Caroline let out a chuckle. "The act of true love." She watched in amusement as Silas' eyes lit up.

"These witches have taken up my mantle without even realizing it!" Klaus backed into Caroline's leg, a little afraid of the crazy, ancient witch. Caroline didn't blame him.

"No, they just wanted to weaken him until they could bring back enough of his well-documented enemies to kill him," Caroline shook her head. Who decided she was going to be the vampire that, instead of being afraid of the ancient, evil immortals, was stuck exasperated and eye rolling at their strange antics.

"But you—" Caroline cut Silas off before he could pout about his favorite almost-couple.

"I'm an unexpected variable. An unaccounted for anomaly. Klaus has made it a point to ensure that no one in New Orleans knew who or what I was, that I even existed. The only people who knew that there was any real potential at all of Klaus being in love were his siblings. With the information the witches had, it was the perfect plan. As perfect as resurrecting Kol or you." She shrugged

"Oh isn't this fun," Silas grinned. "Act of true love," he mumbled to himself. "Have you even tried?"

"Love takes time," Caroline stated defensively. Klaus put his head in her lap affectionately. "You know," she turned to look at him instead of Silas, "I might need a dog after all this is done." Klaus pressed his head into her stomach.

"Takes a hell of a long time," Silas nodded, looking pointedly at the exchange.

"We are not having this discussion, especially not when he's a wolf. All you need to know is that we're working on it. Otherwise, it's none of your business." Caroline stood up from the table. She was definitely missing class. Now it was just deciding if she wanted to go to her discussion that afternoon or day drinking to deal with Silas. Had she really brought this upon herself? She was half-tempted to chant 'Better than Mikael' to herself to remind her why they had brought this upon themselves.

She stalked off to the library. It wasn't fair to Klaus as he wasn't allowed in (she had only just started entertaining the notion of compelling the staff to let her have her 'service dog' with her at all times, but knew that it wasn't particularly fair to those who actually needed them. And he didn't play by service dog rules anyway). Still, she needed to get away from Silas, let him know their conversation was definitely over.

She walked through the building and hoped Klaus would figure her out as she left through an exit on the opposite side of the library. She called out for him lightly, hoping he was listening for her. And hoping Silas wasn't stalking her wolf either. She let out a sigh of relief when the hybrid trotted over to her, psychic witch nowhere in sight.

"We thought that was a good idea?" she asked him, fingers grasping for the nearest part of him she could find. He pressed into her fingertips and walked close enough to her side that she could feel his heat through her jeans.

She shot a text to Jesse to pay attention in discussion for her, not that she could really get the points for the class if she wasn't there to discuss, and then headed off to what she had no doubt was a bad idea. But god did she need a shot of something strong and drinking at a bar sounded a hell of a lot better than the Old Snatch-Eat-Erase (Damon Salvatore, patent pending).

In Caroline's limited experience, Camille hated her. Well, hate was a strong word. Rebekah hated her; Camille didn't know what to do with her. Caroline didn't quite understand it, but the other woman cared about Klaus and was definitely crushing. Sure, Klaus had his charming, sweet moments, but he also had his wounded animal moments and his hybrid rage moments. For Caroline, it was par for the course. She'd dated Tyler who, in all honesty, was a bigger dick than Klaus. She understood hybrids because she'd been with one before. She understood Klaus' wounded animal side because she was a product of a failed marriage and she'd played that card a million times.

What it came down to, really, was that Camille was an Elena. Things had gone well for her for most of her life. People liked her, cared about her, and maybe they didn't know why, but they felt like they should protect her. And then suddenly, a supernatural element shows up in her life, and people around her start dying. Things start going wrong. But at the end of the day, Camille would never want to be a vampire. She would hate herself if she became one.

Which was why she didn't get Caroline. She didn't understand that someone could be better as a vampire. Sure, the whole better, faster, stronger, thing was almost literally true, but in Caroline's experience, being a vampire changed people, rarely for the better, and it almost always shortened their life expectancy despite the whole immortality thing.

And being with Klaus? That required preternatural abilities. It was pretty much set in stone that he needed someone who could give him an eternity. He'd already had centuries of betrayal and hatred. He needed an eternity of loyalty and concern. And he definitely needed someone who could keep up with him, who could challenge him and push him around. Plus, there was nothing better than two supernaturally strong, supernaturally fast creatures having sex. Caroline had done research.

The bar had just opened but Caroline was surprised to see a few patrons had beat her there. "No pets," came Camille's call across the establishment. Caroline ignored it as she and Klaus closed the distance between the door and the bar.

"I said no pets," Camille informed her snidely.

"You want to forcibly remove him? Go ahead. If he so much as bites me, I'm dead before sundown, but you're human so it's not like werewolf bites are toxic to you. Go right ahead," she challenged. "Although can I get your rail whiskey. Neat is fine."

"I'm going to see some ID." Caroline was starting to think Camille _did_ hate her. Or was Caroline the Rebekah in this scenario? That was something she didn't want to contemplate. Caroline, however, did as she asked.

"You expect me to believe you're 22?" Camille raised an eyebrow.

"Five years ago, when I was seventeen, Katherine Pierce—Katerina Petrova if you're an Original—suffocated me with a pillow in my hospital bed. I had vampire blood running through my system, of course, or you wouldn't see me sitting here in front of you, demanding whiskey." Caroline had skipped right over pleasant and straight into patronizing.

"Leave it to a vampire to start drinking before noon," Camille grunted angrily, but provided Caroline with the liquor.

"Not my fault. It sublimates the cravings that get worse when I'm agitated, and I got a nice little visit from Silas this morning. Pompous pain in the ass," Caroline grumbled the last bit to herself.

"Is he really that bad?" Camille looked worried. "I saw Davina this morning. She was there last night for the ritual…"

Caroline let out a huff of breath. "He's on our side. He just drives me insane. He had Klaus all growly and protective all morning, and he was asking me questions that I really don't want to think about the answers to right now, and that I don't want to discuss with human-Klaus, let alone with a psychic witch and my cursed hybrid boyfriend."

She tipped her head back and let out a sigh. "And then there's the whole thing where he looks like Stefan and I haven't spoken to Stefan since…" she shook her head.

"Stefan?" Camille prompted.

"Stefan Salvatore. He's a vampire from my hometown. He helped me through my transition. We were friends. Things went sour around the time I left town. And he just happens to be Silas' doppelganger." Caroline shrugged. "I've had a peaceful couple of years far away from other vampires, witches, werewolves. I sip my blood bags and I don't have to deal with everyone around me freaking dying all the time, or killing and getting all guilty about it."

"You didn't have to come back, you know. Could have stayed in your peaceful little life far away from us," she seemed bitter. "I chose this. I chose to come here and throw myself into it when my brother went crazy and killed everyone. And when it turned out a witch did that to him, did that to my family, I got thrust into this world."

Caroline wanted to tell Camille that staring down Elijah Mikaelson and telling him no was pretty much a death sentence, but that wasn't the real reason she'd come here, and she felt like after that admission, she maybe owed the girl.

"I couldn't just abandon him," she said softly, glancing back at the pacing wolf. "A thousand years and all he's seen is abandonment and betrayal at every turn." She took a breath and continued. "On my 18th birthday, my boyfriend Tyler—Klaus' first successful hybrid—bit me. A single bite from a werewolf will kill a vampire within 48 hours. A hybrid bite is even worse.

"Klaus' blood is the only cure, and it's not well-known. The last time we'd needed it, Klaus had charged my friend Stefan his soul. So when he showed up in my room that night, I was prepared to die, and I was going to do it with, if not my dignity, then at least my pride intact. Instead, he told me that he loved birthdays, and no one should die on their birthday. He said, if I wanted, he would save me. Only if I wanted.

"Up until that point, I'd just believed, like the rest of my friends, that he was completely evil. I saw no benefit for him if he saved me. But when I admitted that I didn't want to die, he didn't hesitate. He held me up, offered his wrist and was surprisingly gentle." She closed her eyes, remembering that night. Remembering the pain, and then the relief, and then the comfort of his arms. She hadn't wanted to admit that night how much better it felt, falling asleep in his arms and not Tyler's, how easy it had been. At that time, she'd assumed it was just the recovery from the bite, but now that the embrace was for her and her alone, she knew that those arms were meant to hold her.

"He didn't even know me back then. Sure, he might have thought I was pretty, maybe a little feisty, but he only knew me as his hybrid's loud-mouthed vampire girlfriend." She let out a short huff of breath that was probably a laugh. "That's the Klaus I couldn't abandon. The Klaus that I've been falling for every day since that one."

Camille poured Caroline another drink, then poured a shot for herself. "Better you than Hayley," she said, holding her glass for Caroline to cheers with.

"Tell me about it," Caroline groaned. Then she launched into the tale of her own dealings with the werewolf.

"Jeez, what did you see in this Tyler kid?" Cammi asked as Caroline finished her tale.

Caroline sighed. "My boyfriend before was on the Elena bandwagon. She may have been one of my best friends, but god did I hate her. I hated being second best to her, and I fought so hard to step out of her shadow. Tyler had never really cared one way or another about Elena. And he was all alone trying to figure out the whole werewolf thing. He needed someone, so I decided to help. Spend enough time alone with someone and things happen." She shrugged. "At the end of the day, he broke his sire bond for me. He cared about me. And the sex was pretty great."

"Better than the sex with Klaus?" Cammi asked knowingly.

"Look, I haven't done enough research on that bit yet. Once in the woods while your mutual most hated enemy is dying after 500 years of being a complete bitch is not exactly an example of proper scientific quality," Caroline stated defensively. Klaus let out a bark-like noise. "Okay, three times in the woods," she grumbled, covering her face with her hands. She could feel it reddening.

"What, this Tyler guy gave it pretty good in the woods?" Cammi grinned at her.

"Did Tyler and I ever have sex in the woods?" Caroline thought back on it. "We spent an inordinate amount of time on the old Lockwood property, but that was always in the cellar."

"I thought you said you were from a small town in Virginia. This place sounds more lively than New Orleans any day."

"More deadly," Caroline corrected.

* * *

 **Reviews are like little nuggets of goodness that make me want to post more often. Just saying.**


	9. Intermission: Caring

**A/N: While this is posted as a chapter of** _ **La Belle et la bête**_ **, this is actually the second related one-shot of the series, and it's told from Jesse's point of view, so as not to confuse you. And to all of you asking what happened to the baby, here it is. As I understand it (I didn't make it that far into the Originals) Hayley had to drink the baby's blood to properly transition. When I wrote this, and left Hayley as a hybrid, I was unaware of this fact. They didn't address it in the episode where Tyler showed up and made a hybrid, and I didn't question it. I just figured doppelganger-free hybrids was the point. After that ramble, I'm really just coming back around to the point that, well, the actual shows haven't had any respect for canon in a long time, so I don't feel obligated to have much concern for it myself. I do have to say it was fun to get into Jesse's head and figure out why I actually liked him enough to keep him around in the story. Finally, this bit addresses one of my longest-running headcanons regarding Klaroline: in my head, Klaus has written letters to Caroline since he left Mystic Falls, keeping her in the loop and remembering he exists so he can keep that pesky little promise he made to her when she graduated. Klaus may have left Mystic Falls and never came back, but that doesn't mean he was going to let Caroline forget him. And also, you know, he would definitely have a bunch of compelled vamps as her not-so-subtle bodyguards and she would email him to get rid of them (my sister's addition to my headcanon). Anyway, I'll just let you read the story now…**

* * *

 **Caring**

 _Thump, thump, thumthump. Thump, thump, thumthump_. The pound of bass was driving Jesse insane. If it had been one of his neighbors, it would have been fine. Surprisingly, the floors and ceilings in the apartment complex did a pretty good job of muffling the throbbing sounds of the popular music that the other college students in the building liked to play. The only other apartment on his floor, of course, was across the hall and had even more between it and Drake's idea of music.

Jesse passed a hand across his face, wondering if he should try to beat the shit out of his older brother. He'd never won before, but he'd never cheated and used magic (he didn't know how the spirits would feel about it. On the one hand, they were siblings but on the other, that noise was godawful). His other option seemed just as crazy, but he needed to finish this paper sometime before his civics class tomorrow, and he couldn't do it with the pounding headache he was getting from Drake's noise.

Before he could think better of it, he'd picked one of his contacts and hit the call button on his phone.

"Hello?" came Caroline's sweet voice. They were fighting constantly, mostly because she was a vampire in love with the ancient evil villain and not him, a warlock, but hey, the spirits hated vampires anyway.

"Hey," Jesse said weakly.

"Are you in a club?" she asked, concern lacing her voice. He heard the low grumble of said villain in the background.

"Hah. That would imply that the noise was a voluntary thing on my part. No such luck," Jesse's voice was humorless and tired.

"Your brother," Caroline guessed.

"And the prize goes to the lovely, young vampire on line one." Jesse leaned back in his desk chair. "Guess who has to write seven pages before Civics tomorrow."

"It should be pretty quiet here," Caroline offered. "If all else fails, there's the basement. Did you know that vampires' houses all have dungeons equipped with torture chambers?"

"My brother turned my apartment into a torture chamber. Klaus' idea of a good time sounds like a godsend right now," Jesse admitted. "I'll be there in fifteen."

"I'd say I'd try to keep Kol under control, but we both know that it'll never happen," Caroline's grin could be heard over the phone. "I'll see you then."

They ended the call and Jesse packed a quick bag. Caroline could give him a ride to campus the next morning, even if he did have to sit in the car with a giant wolf. And he could escape his brother's eardrum bursting idea of 'celebrating being single and alive.'

"Going to your little girlfriend's?" Drake asked as Jesse tried to sidle out the door.

"Yeah," he replied shaking his head, fed up with trying to explain to Drake what was going on. "She's a thousand-year-old vampire. You couldn't handle her if you tried, so don't even think about it." He figured it was better to claim Rebekah than Caroline. Rebekah was, as far as he could tell, single anyway. And he trusted her to make his death a quick one. Klaus would draw it out for decades.

Drake just let out a sharp laugh as Jesse slammed the door shut behind him.

TRANSITION

Usually, Jesse found the Originals' mansion eerily quiet. Tonight, as he dropped his things in the guest room he'd basically been given since he'd agreed to be their pocket witch, he felt at peace. Finally. He set to work on his paper, figuring it wouldn't take him long at all now that he could hear himself think.

He was putting the finishing touches on it when Caroline entered, no ancient Hybrid boyfriend in sight. "If I hadn't heard that dubstep monstrosity over the phone, I would wonder at how unaffected you are by the sounds of Kol's dinner."

"What?" Jesse looked away from his computer screen, just now hearing the excited squeals and faint giggling coming from somewhere down the hall.

"Kol brought his meal home. And he's playing with his food," Caroline said with distaste. Jesse had never seen her feed from an actual human, but he had seen her partake in a blood bag now and again. The other vampires he'd met hadn't been so courteous.

"I can barely hear it," he shrugged.

"Probably because your head's still throbbing in time with the wub wub wub of your brother's shit music," Caroline teased. She looked elegant, legs crossed and sitting for all the world like some queen of a bygone era. He saw why Klaus was so obsessed with her. She fit his ultimate vision perfectly. What he didn't understand was what Caroline saw in Klaus.

"Probably because, warlock or no, I'm still human," he reminded her. "What's with the music?" he asked, suddenly hearing the faint classical music coming from somewhere in the house.

"Klaus is painting," she replied. "Angry painting, judging by the sound of the brush," she added thoughtfully. Clearly, she was listening specifically for him.

"You aren't his muse?" Jesse joked weakly.

"Don't say things like that!" she hissed. "He'll get it in his head that I _am_ his muse and then he'll constantly be sketching and painting me. The horse was enough, thanks."

"Horse?"

She bit her lip, trying to decide if it was worth telling him or not. Finally, she said, "His family held a ball when I was in high school and he was staying in my hometown. He somehow managed to get me to be his date without actually being his date. It was the first real time we had a chance to talk. I'd been dying the time before that, which made it a little strained." She let out a giggle. Clearly, death was a lot funnier when you'd died or something.

"He showed me his art studio there, and his art collection, his sketches. We got into a fight. We always get into fights," the look in her eye was affectionate and not irritated. Jesse did not understand love at all. "Anyway, I was out, petting one of the horses for the carriages and he made a comment. It was all very cute. Until we fought again. His apology was a drawing of me and the horse that he left on my bed." She lifted a delicate shoulder.

"Carriages? I thought you weren't actually much older than me," Jesse admitted.

"I'm 22," she replied off-handedly. "The carriages were just because the Mikaelsons are old and rich and like showing off." She gestured grandly to the room around them.

"So, if you know so much about them, tell me something." This was dumb, but he'd been wondering since he'd arrived in New Orleans. She nodded, urging him to continue. "Rumor in the witch world says that Klaus came back here because some werewolf was having his miracle baby. Where is this miracle baby?"

Caroline's face fell instantly, twisting in pain and sympathy. "Not so loud," she murmured. "Everyone is supposed to know and no one is supposed to talk about it. Klaus has been known to relieve people of their offending body parts." She winced at the thought.

"Wait here a second." She was gone in an instant, vampire speed. Caroline liked to call it whooshing, and some of the others called it vamping. Jesse called it disconcerting.

She returned with an envelope in her hands, thick with paper. "Klaus and I, we didn't have much communication in the last few years," she admitted shyly. "But occasionally, he'd send me a letter when something major happened. I sent him the odd email, usually asking him to remove his compelled guard from my campus. He's pushy and annoying." She grinned at this. God but did she send confusing signals.

"Anyway, he sent me this back when it all happened," she passed him the envelope.

Jesse opened it to see a letter in neat precise block letters. He'd expected Klaus' handwriting to look like something out of the Victorian grimoires he'd studied: stylized cursive that was impossible to read. This reminded him more of the runes he'd seen in some of his Occult History texts. It was dated over three years previous.

 _Dearest Caroline,_

 _By now, you may have heard news of my latest movements. I would be surprised if you had not, actually, as anyone who saw even the official reports would be convinced it was my handiwork. It may seem as if I aim to offer explanation with my following reports. I assure you, this is not the case. Merely, I wish for you to know of my sorrow because you have, in past, shown understanding. You said once that I wished to be saved, and perhaps you are right. Perhaps I wish for you to save me from myself._

 _I am sure that the Lockwood boy made clear my reasons for coming to New Orleans as he saw them. While I once, long ago, called the city home before being chased out by Mikael, many see my return in a different light. The little wolf Hayley was bearing a child that was, according to the witches, mine. One of the side effects of being the Original Hybrid, we can only assume. The little wolf was here, looking into her family, and it was assumed that I followed for the sake of what would have been my daughter._

 _My actual reasons for returning to the city notwithstanding, I did intend to raise this daughter of mine, preferably in a city such as this that I could control and watch over her well-being as I saw was my responsibility. The girl was to be not only a hybrid like myself, but a witch, for you'll recall witchblood runs through my veins. She would have been powerful and fierce and an excellent bearer of my family name._

 _She should have been born last night, dear Caroline. I should be holding my daughter, love, writing to you of joyous times._

 _The birth was a difficult one, so rare in this day but something I have seen many mothers suffer in my many years. Hayley died and save my child's blood running through her veins, she would have stayed that way. Were the girl delivered safely, I couldn't care for the safety of the little wolf. All the better to raise my child with my family without her. Still, the wolf transitioned to a hybrid._

 _The witches serving as midwives, however, did nothing to save the child. They made no move to save the mother, either, but as I begged and pleaded for the life of the child, one of the witches said to me, "She is an abomination. More of an abomination than you. It is better this way." Better. Better? What does she know of better?_

 _The child was stillborn, the mother transitioning, and I was consumed with my sorrow. As you know, many of my emotions manifest poorly. I was furious._

 _I ripped the witches to shreds in my grief. I left the wolf to her own devices to seek out blood while I burned the cottage down, witches and child alike. And then I took my wolf's form and ran through the swamp until I came across something vaguely human to kill._

 _Elijah found me, shouted at me, fought me. My brother has always known how to bring me back to myself. I hear him pacing in his study now, as I write this. He is watching me, waiting for me to act out yet again. In a fit of madness, I cannot find it within me to blame him. I am sad, I am tired, I am old._

 _As always, I find myself writing you when I am at my lowest. It is not just that I need you to know, to understand my actions and my temperament. You are the only one I want to know these things. You are the one I think of first. 'How will I explain this to Caroline?' 'Will this be the time when she looks at me like all the others? Like I'm truly a monster?' My love, I could not bear it if this changed your opinion of me irreparably. If that is the case let me live out my days in ignorance._

 _Rebekah's sighs echo more loudly than her sobs could and I feel the need to feed strongly. I leave you with this, hoping that of all the letters I've sent, this is the one you read._

 _Yours. Always yours,_

 _Klaus_

When he'd finished reading, Jesse sat in silent shock for a few minutes. He didn't know when he'd handed the letter back to Caroline, but he had.

"You're not a vampire, and you've never really had any interaction with werewolves, so you probably don't understand," she said softly. "The werewolf gene wants them to trigger the curse. The wolves are prone to blinding rage. The littlest thing can set them off and then they'll lose themselves to the fight until they kill someone, trigger the gene."

Jesse looked up at her as she paced. "Being a vampire, it's amazing and incredible and awful all at the same time. It's like everything that made you _you_ is magnified, intensified almost painfully. I was insecure, a control freak as a human. Now, I'm a jealous mess, but I'm also more in control of my hunger than any baby vamp has any right to be. The level of control I have over my hunger usually takes vampires years, decades to figure out, if they ever do."

She stopped to look him dead in the eye. "Klaus was a werewolf as a human and his mother cast this curse on him. All of that unexplainable, unavoidable rage was turned up to eleven. Everything is personal and everything sets him off. Once he's in a rage, he can't stop. He does what he does because his dual nature is demanding it of him. If he's a monster, it's not his fault. If you could see the tight rein of his control on his emotions, you wouldn't hate him. You'd be impressed beyond belief."

She turned to leave the room, to leave him to ponder what he'd read and what she'd said. "Please don't bring this up. With anyone. It's the fastest way to get him to rip you to pieces slowly, painfully while he enjoys every last excruciating minute of it."

With that, Caroline was gone.

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	10. Chapter 9

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for your wonderful reviews and all the faves and follows that have been steadily trickling in. They make a girl feel appreciated. This chapter contains some limey goodness, which, if you were unaware, is generally accepted to mean oral sex. If this offends you, you're welcome to click away now. If it doesn't offend you, read away. Just know that this is the first time I've written/published anything like this, and I don't feel like I'm any good at it, so I'm sorry, but it's part of the story. Also, I don't think I've addressed Bonnie so far in this story, especially because my canon-divergence point has her still at the whole anchor to the Other Side thing. Somewhere in my four year dead period, I'm sure there's an adventure or something where she's brought back to life as a normal, proper witch. No Expression, just Bonnie. Don't worry about it. If I ever get through writing the sequel, I'm sure I'll actually address it at some point. But I figured since she shows up in this chapter, I should point that out. Happy reading.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

Caroline's phone lit up and the name that appeared made her squeal in delight. "Bonnie!" she exclaimed excitedly as she answered.

"Oh my god, Care, it is good to hear your voice," Bonnie sighed on the other end of the line. "Please tell me your day has been better than mine."

"Did I ever tell you I transferred to Tulane?" Caroline asked her oldest friend.

"Cara Lynn called me and told me, actually. Was looking for a new wardrobe—I mean roommate," Bonnie joked. "Said something about some scary, serious Edward guy coming to get you and then you disappeared."

"Elijah," she said and heard Bonnie's 'Oh' of understanding.

"That makes a lot more sense. Klaus is kidnapping his victims by proxy now?"

"Klaus is in no shape to do any kidnapping," Caroline informed her. "The witches here in New Orleans cursed him so he can only be a man while the moon is out. Otherwise, he's a wolf."

"Ouch," Bonnie admitted. "What does that have to do with you, though?"

"Think R-rated Beauty and the Beast," Caroline admitted. Bonnie's answering laugh made her grin.

"I thought I asked you to have a better day than me," Bonnie teased.

"I did," Caroline assured her. "I woke up. Wolf-boy was being cuddly, so I got a face full of fur any time I tried to do anything worthwhile. Eventually, I gave up and let him sit with me while I did homework. Eventually, Kol convinced us to go torment Hayley, which was fun. We came back, moon rose, heavy make out session, and now he's painting something while I annoy him with my inane chatter. His words, not mine. I think he kind of likes it though."

"Of course he likes it. He likes you, after all." Caroline had missed the girl talk. Her breakthrough with Cammi had been nice, but with Bonnie, all the old patterns were there. Bonnie knew the history, knew just how to cheer her up, knew when to tease, when to be serious.

"I miss you," Caroline told her friend wistfully.

"Me too, Care," she admitted. "And hey, while we're being serious, are you okay with all of this? You really happy with Klaus or do I need to come kick some Original ass?"

"I'm good, Bon," she replied. "It's not Mystic Falls, and Klaus is… Klaus is great. Patient and kind and—"

"Are you sure we're talking about the same Klaus?" she joked.

"You know he's always had a thing for me. Maybe I developed a thing for him. Now that I'm not just a Damon Salvatore Vampire Barbie Distraction patent pending."

"I should stuff Damon's head in a blender for all the crap he's pulled on you," Bonnie grumbled. "Hell, all the crap he's pulled on all of us."

"Wouldn't want to burn your bridges with Elena," Caroline teased. "Someone's got to be my eyes and ears so that I can pop home while they're out of town and visit Mom's grave."

"He'd survive most of it," Bonnie said unapologetically.

"That would be fun to watch," Caroline admitted.

"Ugh, Care, do me a favor," Bonnie said seriously.

"Anything, Bon," she replied, worried.

"Keep me updated on your amazing life. Between work and stuff going on here, my life sucks."

"Aw, Bonnie," Caroline was now very worried about her friend. "Of course I will."

"Okay. I should go. I have to get up for work in the morning. Like an adult."

"I'm 17 for the next forever, so…" Caroline trailed off jokingly.

"Love ya, Care," Bonnie chuckled on the line.

"You take care of yourself, Bonnie. All right?"

"You got it. Talk to you later."

"Bye."

"The Bennet witch?" Klaus asked without looking up from what he was doing.

"Yup," Caroline agreed. She stood and headed over to see what exactly Klaus was painting. She came up behind him, saw something pretty abstract, and rested her chin on his shoulder.

"Is your intent to distract me?" Klaus asked her, glancing over.

"Do you want to be distracted?" she countered. He leaned just enough to capture her lips. She wrapped her arms around his waist. He was warm and firm as she pressed herself against his back.

He pulled back to look at her. "Perhaps we should move this before I break my neck trying to kiss you."

"Move it where?" she asked dangerously. What was she getting herself into? She wasn't quite sure, but she knew that she enjoyed where it was headed. She was running out of excuses to give him for not giving in and just having sex.

"The bedroom seems a more appropriate place," he kissed her in a relatively chaste manner.

"Okay," she heard herself agreeing.

Before she could process, he was dragging her at vamp speed to the bedroom. The door was shut and locked swiftly, and then Caroline was pressed against it. His lips crushed against hers and she let out a contented noise when he pulled her hips into his.

"The things you do to me," he groaned as his moved to kissing her neck. She felt his hardness pressing against her middle. "To finally have you in my bed, but not in the way I want has been driving me mad these past few weeks."

Caroline thought of their near miss in the woods the first time, when he was in Tyler's body; the not-a-miss-at-all pressed against the tree and then rolling around on the ground on the Salvatore property. It was probably best if they finally enjoyed each other in an actual bed.

But the fear in the back of Caroline's mind pressed to the front and it felt as if a cold bucket of water had been dumped over her. "Sorry," she admitted, pulling back. "I really don't mean to be a tease."

Klaus looked at her face then, and his expression sobered. He let out a growl, then turned to her, surprisingly tender. "What's changed, love? What has you running?" He ran a hand through her hair and she dimly noted that this must be why he leaned into her touch, wolf or not; it was comfort and affection and everything she'd always wanted, and it was Klaus. "What have I done to scare you off this time?"

"It's not you," she shook her head because it wasn't. It wasn't anything he had said or done that had her turning tail and running. "I'm scared," she admitted. "I'm scared because with you it's always been all or nothing. But now, with this curse, the stakes are higher than they've ever been. What if we have sex and it doesn't work? Is that it for us? Because I've waited for so long for this, I've built it up so much and if it just ends like that? I don't think I could take it. But then again, what if it works? What if you're back to normal? Then it's an eternity with you and I just, I don't know if I'm ready for that, you know?"

She was crying now—when had that happened?—and he was tucking her against him, rubbing a comforting hand up and down her arm. "Forever or never," she repeated. "I just don't know if I'm ready for either."

"I understand," he said softly. "It was always my intent to give you as much time as you needed to come to me. This curse has forced our hands more than I care to admit."

He pulled her back and stared in her eyes once again. Instead of saying anything more, he kissed her, slow and sweet, allowing the action to say all of the things he couldn't or wouldn't. Reminding her he loved her.

He guided her gently to the bed, pressing against her softly until she was lying with him atop her. She ran her hands through his short hair, down his muscled back, feeling all of him and reveling in it. His hands slipped under her top and he managed to remove it, barely breaking their kiss. When he removed her bra, she pulled back, the fear, she was sure, present in her hooded, aroused gaze.

"Shh, love," he against her lips before she could make her protest. "I'm not going to pressure you into anything," he promised. "Tonight, I simply wish to please you, sweetheart." He started kissing down her neck toward her exposed breasts. He palmed one lightly, his thumb brushing over her nipple and she arched into the touch with a gasp. "I assure you I merely wish to kiss every inch of you." The mischievous look in his eyes undid her.

"Klaus," she breathed out, pressing her body closer to his.

"May I kiss you, Caroline?" he asked teasingly.

"I might kill you if you don't," she admitted. "Please," she begged for his touch.

Without a further word, he obliged, kissing her just as he promised. First one nipple and then the next, he licked and sucked until she was panting and moaning and writhing for more under his attention. He kissed lower, down her stomach, dipping his tongue into her navel as he unbuttoned her jeans.

In one tug, Caroline's pants and underwear came off and Klaus stared unabashedly at her naked body. Changing position from where he'd been kissing her stomach, he moved to her legs, starting at her knees and working his way up first one leg, then the other.

He paused halfway through these ministrations to admit to her, "If I could, love, I would draw you just like this. Aroused and filled with want for me and only me. I have imagined this more times than you could count, but I've never been able to put pencil to paper. Now that I have seen it for myself, perhaps, my muse, I shall be able to draw you."

"Klaus," she groaned, grasping for his head. When she managed to get a hold on it, she tried to push his mouth to where she needed him.

"Patience, love." He grinned against her thigh. "I'm not quite through here."

He kissed everywhere but where she needed him. "Klaus," her voice was pleading. Never in her life did she think she'd actually beg Klaus for anything. Still, she knew how skilled that tongue was in her mouth. She wanted it on her core.

He kissed up slowly, and finally, finally, his breath was there, hovering over her center. "Is this what you want?" he asked, his tone dangerous, and he flicked his tongue out against her clit. The sensation it sent through her was divine.

"Yes. Oh god, yes," she groaned and arched up towards his face. He grinned wickedly, and did just as he'd promised. He gave her a hot, wet, openmouthed kiss against her lower lips, alternating between driving his tongue into her and licking and sucking at her clit.

It didn't take long for her to find her release, and find it she did, digging her nails into Klaus' scalp, pressing him into her as the tremors hit. She rode her orgasm out against his mouth and he ate up all she had to offer.

She laid back, boneless, and Klaus climbed back up the bed to plant a kiss on her lips. "You taste heavenly, Caroline."

"Mmm," she hummed her response, not really ready for anything else. The others she had been with had never really cared to do that to her, had never been very good it and so she hadn't thought she was a fan of oral sex. Klaus had just made a believer out of her.

"And that was just my mouth," he whispered to her deviously. "Imagine what I can do with the rest of me."

She did imagine and a pleasant shudder ran through her body. In fact, her body seemed more than ready to accept what her mind couldn't. Her mind couldn't think about the way her heart clenched every time she saw that dark, ancient expression cross his features. Her mind wouldn't think about the heat that pooled low in her belly whenever he touched her. Her mind wasn't ready to admit that she was falling for Klaus, fast and hard.

He tugged his shirt off and gently put it on her, kissing her forehead as he pulled the cloth over her head. It was moments like these that she wondered how anyone could see him as a monster. He was gentle and kind and that anyone could hurt him hurt _her_. She knew he was as scared as she was. So she threw her arms around him and nuzzled into his neck. She couldn't say the words just yet, but they were bubbling up in her throat, tugging somewhere around her heart in a glorious, painful way.

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	11. Chapter 10

**A/N: I feel a little guilty about how long this has taken, but I feel even more guilty that the sequel I've been talking up is pretty dead in the water not halfway through. I have, however, been trying to improve my writing and working on a bunch of original stuff, which has taken up my time for the last month or so. While that's going well, I'm afraid that my fanfiction has taken a major backseat. Anyway, have fun with this little chapter. It's short, and it's not necessarily action packed, but, upon editing, I realized it does do** _ **something**_ **to move the story forward. Fair warning, only two more after this one!**

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 **Chapter 10**

There was quite the crowd in the Mikaelson sitting room. A war council as Caroline liked to call it, even if most of the participants weren't particularly interested in the drama unfolding in the supernatural world of the Big Easy.

Klaus was sprawled across one of the sofas, more interested in his sketchpad than he was in debrief he was getting from his generals. Kol was grinning wickedly and Caroline knew the look had more to do with causing mischief (usually involving flirting with her to annoy his brother) than actually caring about the war they were in the midst of. Rebekah was gazing out of the window into the darkness, clearly bored. Even Elijah was more concerned with flipping through ancient manuscripts than listening to what Marcel, Davina, and Hayley were elaborating on in turns. And Caroline herself found that she was more interested in watching the Original siblings than she was in figuring out what exactly the problem was.

Silas, Josh (the young vampire who seemed to follow Davina around like he was her bodyguard when it was probably the other way around) and Jesse were present as well, and all looked about as interested in the goings on as the Mikaelsons were. Silas kept looking between Klaus and Caroline wearing an unreadable expression that she'd come to associate with plotting on both him and his doppelganger. Josh looked terrified and never took his gaze off of Klaus (who he probably saw as the biggest threat in the room). Jesse was unashamedly flipping through one of his textbooks, definitely doing homework and not listening to the meeting at all.

"The witches are concerned," Davina stated simply. "Nothing has happened, things have been quiet, and by their calculations, Klaus should be on a killing spree after having been stuck as a wolf for over a month." She looked at everyone challengingly, finding that even Camille, who'd been flitting nervously between the kitchen and the meeting, wasn't really listening. "They're going to do something drastic. And soon."

"Let them," Klaus replied flippantly.

"What? Are you close to a breakthrough?" Marcel asked. "Because last I checked, you were still a wolf during the daytime and your little girlfriend is busy gallivanting doing everything but breaking this curse. She's not the one, Klaus. If it hasn't worked yet, it's not going to just suddenly work now."

"It hasn't worked because they haven't had sex," Silas announced bluntly. His statement set off a series of blushes, mostly from the younger people around the room.

"Of course they haven't," Jesse grumbled. "Can you blame her?" he gestured at Caroline. "I mean, he's a total dick most days, and from what I've heard, there's a lot of shit they need to work out before she can admit she likes him, let alone do the dirty so that he can go back to his murdering, massacring ways. My vote is for Care to take her goddamn time."

"And the longer the witches remain ignorant of her presence, the longer Caroline remains safe," Kol informed them, uncharacteristically serious. "I can understand why Nik is reluctant to force the matter. Her safety is more important to him than the bloody curse."

"The wolves—" Hayley started only to be cut off by Rebekah.

"Are the least of our concerns," the blonde stated unkindly. "Each day toward the next full moon brings us a day closer to the return of our mother, father, and Finn, all of whom want us very dead and actually have the power to bring that about. Should that happen, it's not likely any of the rest of you would survive. Nik's death would take Marcel, Caroline, Josh and Hayley with him, and the rest of you would be seen as complicit to our horrors. If Esther and Mikael didn't kill you, the witches would."

"By which, Rebekah means that our first priority is stopping the next month's resurrection ritual," Elijah punctuated. "Anything else is peripheral and this meeting is adjourned."

"Thank Christ," Jesse grumbled. "If it's not my idiot brother, it's these stupid meetings."

"What does she mean, Klaus' death would kill you and the others," Camille asked Caroline as the meeting scattered.

"The death of an Original kills their whole line. Any vampire they've sired and any those vampires have sired, down to the youngest baby vamp out there," Caroline explained. "Some of my friends killed their brother Finn a while back, and then watched as vampires we knew as his direct and indirect descendants died only an hour later. Klaus turned Marcel and Josh, my line starts with him, apparently, and his blood made the child that made Hayley. It stands to reason that the girl was his line and not an Original since Hayley's still alive."

"What about your line? Why is it only apparently?" Camille was clearly interested, so Caroline couldn't help but answer.

"I had the blood of a man named Damon Salvatore in my system when I died. He, in turn, was created by Katherine Pierce. She had the blood of a vampire named Rose to turn her. Rose was made by a crazy old vampire named Mary Porter. After finding out the Finn thing, my friends went to see who we descended from, not that it mattered to me. My boyfriend at the time was one of Klaus' hybrids, so I couldn't want him dead. Kol killed Mary before they could ask her, mostly to keep us in the dark, but all signs point to Klaus turning her. Klaus admitted to it, Rebekah just insisted on it, Elijah didn't contest it, and Kol has been dead." She shrugged. "Klaus Killing as a sport really went out five years ago. And I was never a fan anyway."

Rebekah was still in the room, listening closely to their conversation, watching along in interest. Caroline chose to ignore this as Cammi asked her next question. "Do you ever regret turning?" she switched topics abruptly.

Caroline laughed at the question. "You didn't know me before. No one here did, actually, now that I think about it, but trust me, I'm better like this. My friends thought I was going to be the worst kind of person to become a vampire, when, it turns out, I'm one of the best. Being a vampire may amplify everything, but the insecure girl that I was, she strangely became a strong, confident woman as I became a vampire."

"Thinking about becoming a vampire, Cammi?" Rebekah asked in her taunting voice. Caroline suppressed an eye roll, mostly because she didn't think the Original Mean Girl was in a giving mood and Caroline was against dying again.

"What? No!" Camille countered.

"Shame," Rebekah stated lazily. "Killing you sounded like so much fun."

Caroline wanted to snap something back at Rebekah, but really she knew she shouldn't. Klaus loved his siblings, especially Rebekah, and Caroline recognized that if she was going to spend an eternity by Klaus' side, she'd have to make an effort to get along with his siblings. Elijah was pleasant enough, and Kol was fine if kept well enough entertained. It was Rebekah that was proving a problem.

"I'm sure it would be a lot less fun than you think," Caroline told her. "You already hate me. Why would you make my replacement immortal too?"

"She wasn't a very good replacement if you're here too," Rebekah pointed out.

"I never said Klaus was good at picking girls to forget me with. I'm just saying he's pretty obvious about his type," Caroline replied.

"Oh, I missed this good-natured jibing between us." Rebekah smiled the predatory smile Caroline was coming to associate with the Mikaelsons. "Agreeing with you has been so disagreeable."

"Why? Because I actually have good ideas?" Caroline scoffed. "The Mystic Falls crash course in being a supernatural requires a high stakes test in plotting and scheming before completion."

Rebekah watched in amusement as Cammi blinked in confusion. "Tell her, Caroline. Tell her all about the Mystic Falls Academy for Young Vampires, Werewolves and Witches. And don't forget to mention the final exams."

"What's she talking about?" Camille asked.

"In Mystic Falls, you either learn the most byzantine plotting skills imaginable, or you die horrifically, painfully, and repeatedly. Bonus points if it's your own parent on the Founder's Council trying to get you killed." Caroline rolled her eyes.

"Oh, that's not fair," Rebekah pouted. "I was daggered and undaggered more times in that godforsaken town than I was in most centuries. Usually to amuse Nik."

"He really needs to work on his sense of humor," Caroline agreed. "I never had any siblings. How am I supposed to learn what that's like if he goes and daggers you guys all the time?"

"You don't want to be sisters, do you?" Rebekah looked at her in disgust.

"Want? No, not really. But there's only two ways this goes: I break this curse and I'm with your brother for the rest of my unnaturally long life, and we're forced to deal with one another; or, I fail and probably I end up dead or pulling a Katherine."

"I don't think Nik would hunt you down," Rebekah admitted quietly. "I don't think he would kill you because you couldn't fall in love with him."

Caroline wasn't as sure as she was, but she didn't say that. "Well, in the event that you and I are forced to share company for all eternity, I'd really rather this not be like the last Thanksgiving my parents were married for the rest of time."

"It can't have been worse than my parents' marriage," Rebekah shrugged lightly.

"My dad was gay," Caroline responded. "My mom was Sheriff. To say things were frosty would be an understatement. Guns and Jim Beam do not mix."

"I feel like I'm watching the world's highest stakes game of tennis." Camille looked more than a little terrified.

"Mean Girls. You're watching Mean Girls," Caroline groaned. "God, I'm Regina, aren't I?"

"That's conceited," Rebekah scoffed.

"I cast myself as the villain," Caroline scowled at her. "You're just jealous because you're Gretchen Wieners."

Camille, at least, laughed at that. "I wouldn't laugh at that," Rebekah countered. "You're Karen." Caroline laughed at that. "The real question is: who is that tramp who's the heroine of the movie?"

"No, the real question is: why do you two hate each other?" Camille asked.

Caroline figured she'd let Rebekah field this one. "She was complicit in Kol's death," Rebekah announced after a few moments thought.

"I was complicit in Kol's death? I didn't find out it happened until after the fact. Probably because everyone knew that if I had known the plan, I would have shot it down. Quickly. Because I would have been Klaus' distraction once again. And I probably would have told him the plan. Instead, I was consoling my grieving boyfriend because Klaus had just killed his mother." Caroline shook her head. "You're just feeling guilty because in your desperation for the cure, you were more responsible for his death than I was."

It was Rebekah's turn to scoff.

"Plus, you were jealous. You wanted everything I had. Or, everything you thought I had," Caroline pointed out. "Perfect life as a normal girl. Do you know how much work it was? Being perfect? Insecure, neurotic, control freak. That's what I do. I plan and I control until everything goes my way."

"I thought I made it clear we weren't going to have a moment," Rebekah retreated back inside herself.

Camille chuckled darkly. "You are the one who stuck around to torment us. I think you wanted the moment."

"Doubtful," Rebekah sneered at them. "Try to remember you're only alive because you're not worth the trouble of me killing you."

"And none for Gretchen Wieners," Caroline muttered darkly as Rebekah sauntered off.

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	12. Chapter 11

**A/N: This chapter was not topical when I wrote it in September. It was nowhere near Valentine's Day then, I just needed the event for the chapter (and had vaguely decided that it would be a spring semester that Caroline would transfer into at Tulane. I had a reason, even if I can't quite remember it… Either way, I'm apologizing (once more) for taking so long to get here. And thanking all of you for making me feel great with all of your reviews and continuing to favorite and follow both me and the story. It's truly an amazing feeling. One more chapter after this one, guys. Nearly there.**

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

A date. Caroline was on a date with Klaus. The only other time they'd been on an honest-to-god date was the Miss Mystic pageant those few years ago. It felt like an eternity. She halfway wondered what an actual eternity would feel like. She'd never given it much thought. In Mystic Falls, it was a wonder she'd made it as long as she had without dying. Every crisis felt like it was going to be the last, and not in a good way. Once she'd left town for good, Caroline had been playing normal and mostly pretending she wasn't a vampire at all. All of the perks with none of the drama.

"What's the special occasion?" Caroline asked as they sat down at their table. He'd taken her to a fancy restaurant and he was wearing his King Klaus face, which meant he was treating her like a queen.

"Do you know what day it is, Caroline?" Klaus asked her pointedly.

She thought for a moment before groaning. "Valentine's Day? Seriously? I didn't have you pegged for the kind of guy that played into greeting card holidays."

"And here I had you pegged as the kind of girl who loved them," Klaus smirked at her over the table. "It matters not. I really just wanted to take you out."

"I used to love this sort of thing," Caroline agreed. "And then I was single for four consecutive Valentine's Days in college and I got a little bitter. Or a lot bitter." She shrugged a shoulder.

"Really? Four years with no valentine and you're suddenly bitter?" He looked unconvinced.

"Four years ago is right around when Tyler and I blew up. And then you showed up and… at Whitmore they have this thing called the Bitter Ball where all the angry singles go for Valentine's and, I just… I was angry. I was mad at myself, for letting Tyler walk all over me for as long as he did, and I was mad that I let myself feel something for you."

"Are you still angry that you feel something for me?" he asked, the old bitterness seeping into his voice.

"No," she shook her head. "Back then, I was searching for every reason I could to deny you. Because that took some serious willpower, let me tell you. It was easier when I could say we were the good guys and you were the villain. But when I removed myself from the situation, when I got some perspective, everything changed."

"You once told me that you wished that you could forget all of the bad things that I have done, so that you could care for me. Is that still your wish? Is that your object to us?" Caroline hadn't expected the date to become so serious so quickly. She should have expected it. Things had been fun and light between them lately, and that never seemed to last.

"I still can't forget," she admitted slowly, thoughtfully. "But I don't think I want to. We all have that monster inside of us and you wouldn't be you without yours. I said all of that before I killed 12 witches to save Bonnie, if you'll remember. I said it before I even really knew what I was talking about."

Caroline wasn't sure if she was explaining herself properly, but she tried to convey it all with her expression. "I care about you," she reminded him. "I care about you and I'm done punishing myself for that. I'm here and I'm more scared that I won't be able to break your stupid curse than I am about anything you could possibly do to me or anyone around me."

Klaus looked at her with a thoughtful expression. "You're afraid of not being able to fall in love," he wore a small, rare, real smile.

She reached for his hand, craving the comfort of his touch. He clenched her hand in return. "I'm afraid it won't be the right kind of love," she admitted. "The actual falling has nothing to do with it, and hasn't for a long time."

Much of their meal was spent in silence, but they both watched each other thoughtfully. Caroline knew they were both thinking of the curse and if tonight would be the night they made their attempt at breaking it.

They left the restaurant and went to "get dessert" as Klaus put it. Caroline was waiting for him off in a nicer alleyway while he went off to find a suitable meal.

She heard movement and was instantly on guard. There was someone behind her, not a vampire, who was trying to sneak up on her. She spun on him and he jabbed a needle at her, probably vervain. She dodged and grabbed the guy, holding him up to the wall by his neck. "Nice try. First time vervaining a vampire?"

He gurgled against the arm she had pressed against his neck. She pulled back slightly so that he could speak. "Why were you trying to attack me?"

"Klaus. The witches need you to get to Klaus," he rasped.

"So they sent a human to get me?" she scoffed.

"Wolf," he coughed.

"Just before the new moon?" Caroline laughed. "What was your plan? Sneak up on someone who can hear better than you?"

"Don't kill him, love," Klaus' voice echoed through the alleyway. "We don't need Hayley sending the whole pack to my doorstep."

Caroline knocked his head on the brick wall of the building she was propping him up against, knocking him out. "I hadn't planned on it. I'm not you," she pointed out. "Dessert?" she asked, staring at the girl standing next to him.

"Not what you were expecting?" he smirked.

"She's a little small," Caroline shrugged. "It's a lot easier to not kill and also share when you get the big, bulky muscleheads. Plus, ompulsion's easier on idiots."

"Don't you want something nice to look at, though?"

"Meatheads are nice to look at," Caroline shrugged.

She didn't have time to react as the girl he'd compelled to be their dessert stabbed him with a hypodermic needle filled with vervain. She felt the pinch of a needle and then the fire of vervain in her in her veins a moment later.

TRANSITION

Caroline felt groggy and hungry and she was rocking a major vervain hangover. She opened her eye and looked around, but she didn't know New Orleans half as well as she knew Mystic Falls, and all she could tell was that she was in a basement somewhere, tied up with vervain soaked ropes.

"Bloody witches," Klaus groaned from somewhere behind her.

"How are they keeping you restrained?" she asked. "Some sort of wolfsbane-vervain cocktail of mystery?"

"Better," he grumbled. "They're torturing me with a dagger that provides me unimaginable pain. They've taken it out for now, but as soon as they figure out you're awake, I'm sure they'll torture me to torture you."

"Ah, vicious circle," Caroline smiled at the familiarity of the situation. It almost made her miss Mystic Falls. Almost.

"You're here to make sure I behave," Klaus informed her.

"And who's going to make sure I behave?" Caroline asked. "Can you see the chair they've got me tied to? Is it metal or wood?"

"Plastic," he sneered.

"Great. That's going to be a bitch to dig out. Plastic shatters." Caroline was tied at her chest, her wrists and her ankles. Pretty typical. And they didn't even use good rope. Probably because good rope was less likely to splinter and burn her in bigger, wider swathes.

She rocked the chair, managing to balance it correctly so she could get enough momentum to shatter the chair. She would have to hop and land with all of her weight, but she was going to break the chair. "I'm sure you know this," she told him. "But when you kidnap someone, especially a vampire, always spring for the metal chair."

"Hurry. One of the witches is on her way," he replied tersely.

Caroline pulled the maneuver, and managed to shake free of the rope. Standing up, she glanced around the room. Klaus was tied to a table in much the same manner she'd been on the chair, only his had added metal restraints.

"How much more time to we have?" she vamped over to Klaus and started to free him.

"None," the witch announced at the doorway. That was all the warning Caroline got before she was slammed with a series of aneurisms. She sucked in the deepest breath she could manage and remembered Bonnie's explanation and threw the spell off her mind.

"I see you went to witchy preschool," Caroline taunted. "Sorry, I just expect more. Klaus, did you forget to give the witches the info packet I prepared for my arrival in town. She acts like she doesn't know my best friend is a Bennet witch."

"I apologize, love, I've been a bit preoccupied what with being cursed," Klaus snapped. Angry, hurting hybrid she could handle. Sarcasm, she could handle. And she'd snapped one of the bonds on Klaus' wrists. She was pretty sure that he was playing along in her game of buying time.

Caroline vamped across the room.

"I wouldn't go out there," the witch taunted. "You may have been able to overpower me, but there's countless others out there."

"I was actually waiting on someone," Caroline smiled her Miss Mystic, disarming blonde smile.

"Oh, don't wait on my account, sweetheart," Klaus smirked before sinking his fangs into the witch.

"Well, now that the truly immortal has joined us." Caroline rolled her eyes. "Are you prepared to be my meat shield to escape a den of witches?"

"Or, we could just go out the back," he suggested with a smirk.

"Fine, ruin all my fun," Caroline grumbled. "I hope your witchy snack was tasty."

"We'll get you a nice, easily compelled male model once we get home, Caroline." Klaus put a hand on the small of her back and guided her out.

"If this is how all of our dates are going to end, maybe we should just stay in for all eternity," she leaned into him.

"Don't lie to me, love, you enjoyed every second of it." His arm slid around so he was gripping her waist. "I think you've missed little adventures like these."

"As long as we don't turn into Stefan and Damon ready to fall on our swords at Elena's smallest whim."

"Someday, you're going to tell me the whole story there," Klaus informed her.

Caroline had a snarky reply on her tongue but she spotted movement out of the corner of her eye. She whooshed out and managed to be in front of Klaus as the tripwire went off and shards of wood slammed into her body, all of them mercifully missing her heart.

Klaus let out an angry growl and vamped her away. When they were safely away from the witches and back in public, they both started picking the wood chunks out of her.

"You forget, love, I'm the one who can't be killed." She could tell he was trying to sound gentle, but he was hitting more toward irritated.

"I didn't think," she admitted. "I just saw a trap and I didn't want you to get hurt."

"I thought you were going to die," he informed her sternly. "That hurt me more than a few splinters ever could."

"You suffer so much," Caroline felt tears forming in her eyes. "I hate it. I hate seeing you feel like you have to lash out and attack people you care about because you think they don't care about you. I hate when we're fighting and you give me that look that says 'Go ahead, leave me like everyone else does.' I hate that you have every reason to feel that way."

They stared at each other for a moment before she pressed a kiss to his lips. "God, I must love you or something," she grumbled, trying to save face. He smiled as he rested his forehead on hers, eyes shut, more at peace than she'd ever seen him.

"I've texted Elijah," Klaus informed her after they'd dug out the last of the wood shards. "He's coming to pick you up."

"And what are you going to do?" she asked, brow furrowed in concern.

"Some witches need to be taught a lesson," he stated darkly.

"Klaus." All she seemed to be able to manage was his name. Glancing around, she noted the time. "It's going to be morning soon," she added, her concern growing.

"I don't need to be human to teach them this lesson," he replied. "You're going home with Elijah and I'm killing the witches."

"And if they overpower you again?" she asked pointedly.

"Caroline, love, please." She could see the tension in his shoulders, the tenuous grasp at control he had. She reached for his hand, snagging it before he could leave her there.

"I love you," she said, looking him dead in the eye. It didn't break her like she'd thought it would. It felt good—really good—to admit how much she really cared about him, to herself and to him.

"And I, you," he returned, his jaw still clenched.

"Stay with me until Elijah gets here at least," she pleaded. He nodded slowly and dragged her into his chest. He was warm and he smelled good and Caroline was feeling weak. Very weak. Any tears she'd managed to hold back burst forth.

"I will return, Caroline," he assured her. "I will always return for you." It was a far cry from his 'I'll never come back' of four years ago, but it was exactly what she wanted to hear now, just like that had been what she'd needed to hear then.

"Niklaus, Caroline," Elijah greeted plainly.

The couple broke apart and Caroline climbed into Elijah's SUV while Klaus vamped back over to the witches' manor. She chose to sleep on the ride home, trusting Elijah would somehow manage to get her to her bed. He was the honorable Mikaelson after all.

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 **While you're here, why don't you leave a fancy review, and hit the fave and follow options as well. It's your second-to-last (penultimate if you're a pretentious asshole, which I am) chance to do so after all. Make the most of it while you still can!**


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N: Sorry this has been such a long time coming. I've had it written, I swear! I've just been avoiding editing it. And I didn't actually do any heavy editing. I gave most of it a once over for typos and glaring grammatical errors (none of which I saw), but ultimately I didn't put a close eye to it, for better or worse. Anyway, this should have all been posted months ago. The major thing that was stopping me was the sequel that I was working on. I had ideas, I had a plan, but ultimately lost interest, and as such it's unlikely that said sequel will ever see the light of day. However, there is a** _ **crossover**_ **I've been working on that features Klaus and Caroline in a supporting role, so we'll see if that ever makes it to this site.**

 **As a final note, I would like to thank all the people who favorited this story as I was posting, all of the people who followed it as it was going up, and every single person who typed out a review, no matter if it was positive or negative. Every little notification I received about people reading this story made my day. This is far and away my most popular story ever on this site, and it's thanks to all of you readers, so thank you, all of you, for reassuring me that I am a decent writer. Now, enjoy this chapter that's dedicated to you.**

* * *

 **Chapter 12**

Caroline awoke weaker than she'd felt in a long time. She felt as if she was sick. That could only mean there had been werewolf venom somewhere in the previous night's adventure. Either the wood splinters or plastic shards they'd dug out of her. She groaned.

"Awake finally," Rebekah noted dully.

"Is Klaus back yet?" she asked. Of course, if he had been, he would have been in the bed beside her, she was sure. Especially since the sun was high in the sky.

"No. I'm sure he's neck deep in witchy entrails," Rebekah informed her.

"Can you get me blood?" Caroline rasped. She was thirsty, which she hoped was a good sign. And it was progressing a lot more slowly than a hybrid bite, thank god, so it was just regular werewolf then.

"Get it yourself," Rebekah replied, pushing off the doorframe where she'd been leaning. "I agreed to watch you until you woke as per Elijah's request, but that, I'm afraid, is where my obligation ends."

"Sometime last night, the witches got werewolf venom in me," Caroline closed her eyes as agony radiated out from her thigh. That's where the toxin was coming from then. "I feel like death and I'm going to continue to feel like death until Klaus gets back and I can have some of his blood. The least you could do is bring me a blood bag. Please. It should still be early enough that I can keep it down."

"Caroline Forbes begging me for blood," Rebekah drawled. "Oh, I do like this."

"Dear sister," Kol popped up then and Caroline prayed to as many gods she could think of that he was going to be helpful for once. "While I enjoy riling Nik up as much as the next person, I do think that now is not the time. You're more likely to get a dagger for irritating him today than casual annoyance. What do you like, Caroline? A positive, O negative? We've got quite the buffet for you."

He was only asking so he could store the information away for later, probably to use it against Klaus when he was in a bad mood, to get out of trouble with his brother. Still, Caroline was hungry, and knowing how this was going to go, she knew that her favorite blood type would make her feel at least a little better before the agony that was going to come.

"B positive," she said, flopping back on the pillow. Something told her that the eldest Mikaelson was out—probably fetching his brother—otherwise she would have already had her blood, most likely in a nice crystal tumbler that was usually saved for Klaus' favorite scotch. But, she would take what she could get.

"Running around, playing maid for Nik's little pet project, aren't you cute, Kol," Rebekah followed her brother out of the room, but Caroline continued to listen to the exchange. After all, what was the point of having vampire hearing if you couldn't eavesdrop on private conversations. Especially when Rebekah was basically screaming for the attention.

"Something tells me that the next time Nik is on a rampage and it's our heads he wants to see roll, or at the very least, a nice little dagger nap in our lovely coffins, she could mean the difference between mercy and another century missed," Kol said, his tone light on the surface, but there was a tight edge underneath.

"Please," Rebekah scoffed. "He won't grant us mercy just because she asks for it. It will just end with her dead and the rest of us staring down that white oak stake in terror."

"When was the last time you saw him happy?" Kol asked her pointedly. "Because in the time she's been here, he's been smiling, he's been practically nice to all of us, and have you seen his paintings?"

Rebekah didn't say anything after that, but she did return with Kol and the blood that Caroline eagerly drank. When she finished, she felt slightly better, and she hoped that the hallucinations would hold off for a little bit, because she really was not looking forward to that part of almost dying.

"So, why are you two on baby-vamp-sitting duty?" she asked setting the empty blood bag down on the bedside table. "Is everyone afraid I'm going to go after Klaus like some kind of idiot, or is this to keep the witches from getting to me while he's out."

"Originally, it was both," Rebekah stated brusquely. "Now that you're not fit to go anywhere, however, it is merely to keep someone from finding and killing you in your severely weakened state. None of us would survive if Nik thought us responsible for your death." Caroline wondered just how much property damage Klaus had incurred when the witchy midwives had let the baby die.

Caroline nodded and laid back on the bed. She was tired. She hadn't been this tired… well, since the last time Klaus had bitten her. She hoped he'd come back soon. And not just because she wanted the stupid werewolf venom sickness to go away.

TRANSITION

The moon had risen and the witches were dead. Klaus entered his home, half-expecting Caroline to launch herself at him immediately. He had hoped she would. Instead, he was met with silence and an angry young warlock staring at him.

"Where's Caroline?" he asked, not having the time or patience to think about anything else. He was fairly certain he also still wore the blood of the witches he'd spent the day playing wolf-and-mouse with (much more fun than the usual cat-and-mouse for obvious reasons).

"If you'd bothered to come home last night, you'd know," the young warlock snapped at him. Klaus rarely liked dealing with Caroline's little school friend even on his best days. Right now, Klaus wanted to bury himself in Caroline and enjoy the breakthrough they'd had the previous night. He was tired and hungry, but mostly he wanted her.

"If you're angry because I killed your little witch friends, I assure you it was necessary. They harmed Caroline," he ground out as nicely as he could muster. "Now where is she?"

"Upstairs in your bedroom, Niklaus," Elijah said from the stairs. "The boy is merely angry because she has been suffering the effect of werewolf toxin all day."

Caroline heard Klaus swear in some ancient language, and then he was at her side in an instant. She was just happy she'd been coherent enough to hear the exchange between Klaus, Jesse, and Elijah. Hallucinations of Katherine and Elena had been pestering her all day, and Stefan's brooding brow had made its presence known somewhere in there too.

"Arm," Caroline demanded petulantly and he supplied it for her quite willingly. "This one's not your fault, so save me the speech, 'kay?" she said as he managed to sit behind her and prop her up. Then, she sunk her fangs into his wrist and drank, his warm, tangy blood coating her throat pleasantly. The burning sensation radiating from the wound on her thigh faded into nothing, and then she was just drinking his delicious blood.

"Caroline," his voice was husky. "When you're quite finished, I believe we have more pressing matters to attend."

She pulled away, licking the last few drops to escape his wrist before the wound swiftly healed over. "I love you," she admitted freely. She'd wanted to say how much she'd missed him, how he could have waited to play with witches and spent the day with her. Instead, she tried to let those three words say it all instead.

"Caroline." The way he said her name, directly in her ear, sent a heat strait down to her sex. She responded in the only logical way she could imagine, climbing onto his lap and kissing him. She'd been aiming for slow and sweet and loving, but his arousal was pressing against her where she was straddling him and she ground down, relishing both the sweet friction she created and the appreciative groan that came out of him.

He used his vampire speed to flip them over so that she was lying on the bed and he was hovering over top of her, kissing her urgently and tugging at the bloodied clothing from the night before that she'd never had the energy to change. His were full of blood too, so she didn't feel bad when she ripped his shirt open.

"Someday, we're going to manage to have sex without literally ripping each other's clothes off," she panted as he started nipping and sucking at her neck.

"That doesn't sound like any fun," he growled, gripping the neckline of her top and pulling with his considerable strength. Her bra received the same treatment, and their jeans didn't fare much better against their lust for one another.

Once they were both naked, Caroline made the executive decision to vamp-flip them so she was on top, grinning down at Klaus. He didn't object, just slid his hands up from her waist to her breasts, eliciting a moan from Caroline as he paid special attention to her nipples.

She decided to return the favor from a few nights previous and leaned down to press kisses from his jaw, down his collarbone, over the tattoo on his shoulder, down his chest and stomach before taking him in her mouth. She was rewarded by the hand that instantly fisted in her hair and the slight buck of his hips.

She licked and sucked, generally driving him mad, and watching him start to come undone under her touch had arousal curling low in her belly. Her desire for something, anything, between her thighs was getting to be a bit much.

"Caroline," he warned, tugging lightly to pull her away from his cock. "Love, I'm going to need you to stop that for now." She pulled back and looked up at him questioningly. "As much as I was enjoying that," he explained, pulling her back up his body, stopping just before he fixed their mouths together, "I think we both need something else." He slid a hand down to cup her sex and she moaned as he slid a finger along her entrance, testing her wetness.

He must have found her ready, because he flipped her over and slid home in an instant. She clenched around him and dug her nails into his back. When he started moving, she groaned in pleasure. She met him thrust for thrust and it didn't take him long to hit that sweet spot inside her so that she was panting his name.

He gripped her thighs, tugging her to adjust his angle and she cried out as the pressure grew greater and greater. She was on the cusp of her release and he moved so that he was kissing her again, swallowing the noises she made, resting his forehead on hers intimately.

One of his hands snaked between them and he stroked her clit, sending her over instantly. She pulsated around him and rode out her orgasm. As the aftershocks were still sending tremors through her body, he thrust a few times more before stilling and reaching his own climax. He collapsed on top of her, and she didn't even think to ask if he felt like his curse had been broken. Instead, they fell asleep, still tangled up in one another.

It wasn't until the next morning, when Caroline woke up still tangled in the arms of a very human-looking Klaus that she knew it had worked. They had done it. They'd broken the curse.

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